Are there Kestrels in Colorado?
Kestrels prey on insects, small rodents, songbirds, small amphibians, reptiles and, occasionally, small bats. These falcons can be found in Colorado year-round. The American Kestrel does not build a nest, it finds cavities and crevices in trees, buildings, rock, or man-made boxes.
Where can I find a kestrel?
The American kestrel occurs throughout the Western Hemisphere from Alaska and Canada to southernmost South America. They are the smallest and most widespread falcons in North America. Kestrels can be found in most open habitats with adequate cavities for nesting and perches for hunting.
How do I attract Kestrels to my yard?
To attract and keep American kestrels in your area, your land management plan should support open, vegetated fields for kestrels to use as hunting grounds. Kestrels also require nesting cavities and perching locations. Adding nest boxes often makes previously unsuitable habitat suitable.
Are there peregrine falcons in Colorado?
Peregrines winter on the coast north to British Columbia and Massachusetts, and in South America. In Colorado, the falcons can be found from the Front Range to the state’s western border.
What does a Colorado Falcon look like?
These tiny falcons have small heads and beaks as well as some beautiful markings, especially the males with their blue wings and brown spots. Both male and female of this species have dark vertical stripes on their heads and are very pretty birds.
What time of day do kestrels hunt?
Kestrels need to eat 4-8 voles a day, depending on the time of the year and the amount of energy-consuming hover-hunting they do. They have a habit of catching several voles in succession and caching some for later. The stored food is usually eaten the same day just before dusk.
Is a kestrel a hawk or falcon?
The American kestrel (Falco sparverius), also called the sparrow hawk, is the smallest and most common falcon in North America. It has a roughly two-to-one range in size over subspecies and sex, varying in size from about the weight of a blue jay to a mourning dove.
What direction should a kestrel box face?
Good locations for Kestrel houses are open fields and meadows or along fence rows. Houses can be mounted on utility poles, buildings, lone trees, or your own post. The house should face south or east.
Do Kestrels eat bluebirds?
Kestrels compete over the limited supply of nesting cavities with other cavity-nesters, and sometimes successfully fight off or evict bluebirds, Northern Flickers, small squirrels, and other competitors from their chosen sites.