An American Kestrel in Coronado

Rene Schafer sent us this wonderful photo of an American Kestrel, which is commonly, and incorrectly, called a sparrow hawk in North America Rene tells us that, “This shot was taken from inside our apartment through glass (so it's not so clear).  This male kestrel landed on our balcony railing.  He never turned around so we could see his full front.  I think it was looking for food.  It is considered rare to fairly common transient along both coasts in Panama.  So we were very lucky to see it in Coronado so close up. “The American Kestrel is a small falcon, from 8.5 to 10 inches, and considered to be the most colorful raptor in the world.  There are very distinctive narrow black facial markings on each side of the head.  The male has a blue head, rufous (reddish-brown) back, blue grey secondary wings and has white belly with black spots.  Kestrels need a perch for hunting.  They eat grasshoppers, dragonflies, lizards, mice and other small birds.” 

The American Kestrel has a huge range. Except for the Artic Tundra and the Amazon this small falcon is found from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego.

The American Kestrel, like the Caracara mentioned in a previous article, has benefitted from the clearing of forests. As Rene notes the bird perches on trees and telephone poles while it watches for prey. It apparently is also fond of window ledges as Rene’s photo demonstrates.

The Cornell Ornithology lab web site has a very informative page on the American Kestrel including a brief recording of its cry at http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/American_Kestrel/.