Thread: American Kestrel.. Dove hunters be careful..

My falconry apprenticeship is slowly taking off and I am getting to work with a variety of raptors.
My absolute favorite raptor to fly is the American Kestrel(Falco Spaverius)(while I like the Harris's hawk, and goshawk, the Kestrel is a stick of dynamite in a tiny body). They tend to hang out near open fields, and this can be a problem as an inexperienced hunter can mistake them for a large dove/pigeon. I hear stories all the time when I walk in the hunting store about dove hunters "accidentally" shooting hawks or falcons, that is unfortunate as these raptors have never caused an issue for 99.99% of hunters or farmers. The occasional free range chicken may get got, but thats a risk associated with free ranging your barn yard pimp.

Please be mindful of these little guys, their habitat is slowly disappearing.

Females will be brown/Rufus and males will have slate/blue wings and head, they are able to hover in the fields while searching for insects/mice/birds. The call of a Kestrel is a shrilled "Klee klee klee klee"...

I like the little guys, and yes they do tend to look like a dove when flying in fields. The kestrels are definitely unique little birds, but don't be so quick to lump them all into the harmless category. We have red tails everywhere here. Several problems tend to arise with them around poultry farmers, as well as the occasional newborn kid or lamb (buzzards too, and that includes newborn calves). In one case for us, not only were we not raising free range chickens, but there was a wire top over the pen than held black giants (should be big enough to deter most aerial predators since they can weigh up to 13 pounds). Had a hawk land on the wire top and finally find a hole to sneak through and was trying to kill a hen when we found him. Several times in the past, when we didn't have a wire top, we lost chickens to hawks (not to mention everything else that tries to kill them).

very true. I’ve seen a lot of dove hunters almost shoot kestrels by accident. They have a different flight pattern, that’s the only way I can tell them apart. Posted up on a power line kestrels look like a large mourning dove.

I’ve had two run ins with Cooper’s hawks killing my chickens. That’s a smart bird, they just sit there watching for several minutes just thinking out an attack plan. I ran him off, and five minutes later I hear my chickens screaming, rooster ain’t worth killing, didn’t even try to defend his flock. Crafty little chits hawks can be...

Shallow- I agree they can be a problem to a few people with small livestock, but so are coons, fox, yotes, fire ants, etc. I hear stories from farmers(unknowing I actually love raptors) using #2 dukes nailed on fence posts with a mouse to catch and kill hawks. I never had an issue with my flock of chickens unless I free ranged them. I had roughly 400 birds. I haven't thought about a RT killing a goat kid, but i guess that is possible. Vultures are overpopulated starving to death. There is not enough carrion for them to survive on and they don't take live prey..

Wire is a must on open coops

What do they taste like ;-) lol

Originally Posted by Pier#r

What do they taste like ;-) lol

A hefty fine lol

Originally Posted by Pier#r

What do they taste like ;-) lol

Like Spotted Owl

I know this sounds disagreeable, but no one has ever seen a red tailed hawk with anything larger than a squirrel, or small rabbit. Do not have the lift capabilities. The Golden Eagle has been documented for thousands of years taking baby goats and lambs, up to 8 lbs. The Osprey can lift up to 10 lb., and that has been documented. The greatest lift ratio for a bird is most likely the Shrike, which has been documented taking song birds equal or slightly above their body weight. Encyclopedia of North American Birds, John K. Terres. We have witnessed Peregrines taking Pigeons, and Coopers taking Pigeons, always fun to watch. And a Great Horned Owl took a Crow off the side of the road one evening.

Originally Posted by bodebum

The greatest lift ratio for a bird is most likely the Shrike, which has been documented taking song birds equal or slightly above their body weight. Encyclopedia of North American Birds, John K. Terres. We have witnessed Peregrines taking Pigeons, and Coopers taking Pigeons, always fun to watch. And a Great Horned Owl took a Crow off the side of the road one evening.

I love a loggerhead shrike.. they, like the kestrel are becoming threatened. The little shrikes go after my bait mice faster than the kestrels...

My nephew and I seen a Loggerhead take a Purple Finch, cut off the wings and head and fly away with the body, which is about the size of a Shrike. We used to find small frogs, lizards, and large grasshoppers stuck on the barbed wire fence, that the Shrike would come back to if he didn't find another meal. My Granny called them "Butcher Birds".