Kestrel Falcon Conservation
by John R. C.     

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2002 Stats
My 17 Boxes (12 were placed in time)			Other 10 Boxes
3 boxes should have Kestrel eggs and or babies in them.			7 boxes should have Kestrel eggs and or babies in them.
2003 Stats (forthcoming)
2004 Stats (forthcoming)
2005 Stats (forthcoming)

So far, the utilization of new boxes placed since 2001 has almost doubled with each year. --2005

My observations/comments: Even before my first season working with Kestrels I'd only heard Kestrels twice between 4/1 and 5/3 of 2002. Once while repairing an existing box, and once while checking an existing one. Most of the times I see them is while driving. On 5/18 I heard Kestrels 3 times that day when I watched active boxes from the road.

In mid-April of 2002 I saw 8, possibly 9 Kestrels while driving one-way along a 3 mile stretch of road where there are 8 Kestrel nest boxes. I have seen from 5-6 here on some other occasions. I can see Kestrels here on about 90% of the times I visit it throughout the year. I'm not aware of any other areas with that high of a population density. My guess is that the Kestrels were raised in these boxes and also use them as winter roosts.

In late March and early April I no longer see the Kestrels in as many places as I did in the late summer, fall, and winter. They seem to stay only in certain areas that they may be nesting in.

Based on what I've heard and seen, many Kestrels nest in straw nests as far as new and unmaintained boxes are concerned. Starlings seem to be the first birds to use the boxes if they are mounted early enough in the season. They remove the wood chips/shavings and replace them with their own grass and straw nests. Kestrels then usurp the nest boxes from the Starlings. In the case of my nest box #1, Starlings removed the wood chips and only had time to add a few strands of straw before the Kestrels took it over. I then filled the nearly bare bottom of the box with 3" of straw.

In mid-March of 2002 I found large grashopper peices in a 10 yr old Kestrel box I was helping to repair. There were also the partial remains of a Kestrel.

In May 2002 I had the opportunity to observe a Kestrel banding project in VA. I was able to see and hear a lot of adults and also photograph many baby Kestrels. 40 of them got leg bands and there were an additional 50 more babies/eggs scheduled for future banding. Here are 5/11/2003 photos of a nest box on that trail.