Common Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus) — identification, habitat & look-alikes

Common Kestrel is a small falcon widespread across Europe, Asia, and Africa, and a rare visitor to the United States. It is larger than the American Kestrel and often hunts by hovering over open ground. In North America, it is also called Eurasian Kestrel.

Appearance

Appearance: The adult male has a gray head, rusty back, and gray tail with a broad black band near the tip. Females are browner, with barring across the back, wings, and tail.

Look-alikes

American KestrelFalco sparverius

Common Kestrel is larger. An adult male Common Kestrel has rusty wings and a gray tail, while an adult male American Kestrel has blue-gray wings and two dark marks on each side of the face.

Why they get mixed upBoth are small, long-tailed falcons that hover over open ground.

Where it lives

Typical habitats: grasslands and farmland
open country
towns and road edges
Range: It is widespread across Europe, Asia, and Africa. In North America, scattered records come from Alaska, British Columbia, and the Northeast.
Seasonal presence: Most populations live in the Old World; in the United States it is a rare visitor.

Behavior

Diet: It mainly hunts small mammals and also takes small birds, insects, and reptiles.
Activity: It often perches on wires or posts and hovers into the wind while scanning the ground. Its wings are pointed, and its tail is fairly long.

Conservation

IUCN Red List: LCLeast ConcernLow risk of extinction
Status: The global population trend is decreasing.

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