| American Kestrel Identification Tips |
| (Credit: U. S. Geological Survey) |
| General
Information - Short, dark, hooked beak - Small, long-tailed hawk - Long, narrow, pointed wings - Gray crown - White cheeks - Two black mustache marks - Black spot at rear of crown on both sides - Seen from below, flight feathers are pale with dark barring - Juveniles and immature females like adult female Adult male - Rust patch on crown - Rust nape, breast, back and tail - Rust tail has a broad black subterminal band and a narrow white terminal band - Pale belly - Blue-gray wing coverts - Dark flight feathers with pale subterminal spots creating a "string of pearls" - Black spots on scapulars, wing coverts and flanks Adult female - Pale buff breast streaked with brown - Rust-brown nape, back and wing coverts - Back and wing coverts barred heavily with black - Rust-brown tail with numerous dark bars of even width and a narrow white terminal band Immature male - Barred rust-brown back barred heavily with black - Streaked breast Similar species Sharp-shinned Hawk is of similar size, but has rounded wings and much different patterning. Merlin is larger with broader-based wings, lacks rust tones to back and wing coverts, has a single mustache mark and strongly checkered underwings. |
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