Lesser Kestrel

Falco naumanni

Family: Falcons and Caracaras · Status: Vagrant · Size: 29–32 cm · Conservation: Least Concern

Range

Breeds in northwestern Africa, southern Europe, temperate Asia, the Middle East, northern China to southern Siberia; winters in sub-Saharan Africa, rarely to the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia.

Identification

Good views are needed to separate this species from Common Kestrel. Male has grey head, plain rufous-chestnut mantle and median coverts, grey upperwing coverts and tertials, and buffish underparts with fewer, rounder spots than Common Kestrel. Female is brownish with barred upperparts, indistinct moustachial/cheek stripe and no dark line behind eye; juvenile almost identical to female. Differences from Common Kestrel: pale yellow claws (Common Kestrel has black claws), proportionately longer central tail feathers, and proportionately shorter outermost primary – p10 shorter than p8 (in Common Kestrel, p10 is as long as p8).

Habitat

Open country, reclaimed land and grasslands; most likely on passage during raptor migration.

Behaviour

Typically hovers while hunting over open habitat such as grasslands.