American Kestrel, Falco sparverius

Very poor quality - posting just for the record : ) Almost always when I do see an American Kestrel, it is perched way off in the distance. Yesterday, 23 September 2016, was no different. I had a few errands that needed to be run and then I called in at Fish Creek Park, hoping that I might just see the juvenile Black-crowned Night-Herons that some people are still seeing down there. Totally out of luck, though I did see a Belted Kingfisher perched off in the distance. Luckily, I had seen the Night-Herons a few weeks ago, during a birding walk.

This was the second time this Kestrel flew to this branch. The first time, it landed with a dragonfly that it had caught. After eating the tasty parts, it flew off, circled and then returned to this perch. The sky turned blue just at the right time. I wonder if Kestrels eat Mosquitoes - there were quite a few of those around. I don't know if those are Mosquitoes that you can see flying nearby.

"North America’s littlest falcon, the American Kestrel packs a predator’s fierce intensity into its small body. It's one of the most colorful of all raptors: the male’s slate-blue head and wings contrast elegantly with his rusty-red back and tail; the female has the same warm reddish on her wings, back, and tail. Hunting for insects and other small prey in open territory, kestrels perch on wires or poles, or hover facing into the wind, flapping and adjusting their long tails to stay in place. Kestrels are declining in parts of their range; you can help them by putting up nest boxes." From AllAboutBirds.

www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/American_Kestrel/lifehistory