Kestrels and peregrines are closely related birds of prey; both are falcons and members of the hawk family. The kestrel is often called a sparrow hawk and the peregrine a duck hawk. Today we’ll learn about the kestrel, and we’ll look at the peregrine in the next issue.
The kestrel is a pretty bird with a cap of bluish-gray, brown and rust colors on its white head and an outstanding display of rust, bluish-gray, black and spotted-white feathers over the rest of its body and wings. It builds its nest in a tree, on the side of a high cliff, or sometimes even on a ledge of a tall building.
Kestrels make their homes in just about every part of the United States, Mexico and southern Canada. Where winters are cold, they migrate south in the fall, but in the southern states they remain year-round.
Like all hawks, their food is mainly small animals, such as mice, moles, rats and also fish. They also dispose of many insects, like caterpillars and dragonflies. Being the size of a blue jay, they don’t attack even the smallest birds in the air, for they are not swift enough to catch them. However, if they see one of the smaller birds, like a sparrow or chickadee, hopping or resting on the ground, they will fly silently over it and then drop down and capture it. People are not happy to see them catch birds but are glad when they catch mice, rats and insects.
Kestrels spend much of the daylight hours hovering over open fields or perching on posts or electrical wires near open fields. Their sharp eyes are alert for prey to eat on the spot or to take to a mate or to young birds in the nest. They have a peculiar habit which will help you identify them. When perched on a post, they often pump their tails up and down, as though they are trying to keep their balance. They also have an unusual call; it sounds like they are repeating, “klee-klee-klee.”
The mother bird lays about five eggs in the spring, and the young hatch in about four weeks. A month later they are ready to fly and are soon on their own.
Kestrels are part of God’s creation, and He has much delight in them. But their lives are for this world only, compared with humans who have a never-dying soul. God gives us a special invitation: “[Let] the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God” (2 Thessalonians 3:55And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into the patient waiting for Christ. (2 Thessalonians 3:5)). Are you aware of God’s love for you? Do you know His Son, the Lord Jesus, who loves you so very much that He died for you?
(to be continued)