American Kestrel

A fast, ringing string of high klee notes with a hard metallic edge. Kestrels use this excited call in several situations, including alarm and activity around a nest.

Found across much of North America. Many birds stay year-round in the south, while northern breeders migrate south for winter.

Open country is its sweet spot: grasslands, farm fields, deserts, parks, and roadside edges with scattered trees or poles. It likes wide hunting space and nearby cavities for nesting.

Spring and summer bring courtship, cavity nesting, and fledglings. In fall, northern kestrels move south while southern populations often stay put; in many southern wintering areas, females tend to use more open habitat than males.

North America’s smallest falcon, the American Kestrel looks bright and tidy, with a rusty back, blue-gray wings, and a crisp double face stripe. You’ll often spot one perched on a wire, tail twitching, then dropping fast onto a grasshopper or mouse. In flight it looks quick and buoyant, with pointed wings and a chestnut tail flashing in the sun.