American Kestrel
Learn to identify the American Kestrel by ear. Master the "klee-klee-klee-klee!" phrase and tell it apart from similar species.
What the American Kestrel sounds like
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.
“klee-klee-klee-klee!”
How to tell it apart
Lessons featuring the American Kestrel
Ready to test your ear? Practice identifying the American Kestrel's sounds in these interactive in-app lessons.
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Where you'll hear it
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.
Entirely diurnal. It hunts by day—often most actively in the morning—and spends long stretches perched in the open scanning the ground.
Similar species
Merlin
Merlins are darker and stockier, without the kestrel’s bright rusty back and neat double face stripes.
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Sharp-shinned Hawks have broader, rounder wings and a bulkier chest than a kestrel.
Peregrine Falcon
Peregrines are much larger and heavier overall.