American Kestrel

Falco sparverius · Raptors

American Kestrel, female

San Diego, 6 March 2026

A female American Kestrel in profile in San Diego in March, on a perch over open ground, which is where kestrels hunt across the whole of the Americas. The Californian birds are residents; the eastern ones come south for the winter.

The double black facial stripes - one below the eye, one further back on the cheek - are present on both sexes and are usually the fastest way to identify a perched kestrel at a distance, well before the wing colour that separates male from female is visible. The pair of dark spots on the back of the head are thought to work as false eyes, discouraging attack from behind by larger hawks.

American Kestrel, female

San Diego, 6 March 2026

A female American Kestrel on a perch in San Diego in March, head raised and alert. Kestrels are the falcon of open country across the Americas, hunting from a perch or a hover over grassland, farmland and scrub, and a Californian park with lawns and fence posts suits them well.

Kestrels hunt as much by sight from a perch as by the hovering flight they are best known for, and a bird like this one watches the ground methodically, head bobbing to judge distance, before dropping on anything that moves. The rufous back and wings barred with black mark a female; a male has slate-blue wings. The smallest falcon in North America, not much bigger than a jay.

American Kestrel, female, with prey

San Diego, 6 March 2026

A female American Kestrel on a perch in San Diego with prey, most likely a large insect or a lizard, already reduced to scraps. Kestrels are the falcon of open country across the Americas, hunting from a perch or a hover over grassland and scrub, and a Californian park with lawns and fence posts suits them well.

Brown, barred wings rather than the male's blue-grey mark a female; North America's smallest falcon, and one of the few raptors with such a clear difference in colour between the sexes. Kestrels take a wide range of prey well below the size most falcons bother with.