Bird
🦅
🦅
Size
32–35 cmSlightly smaller than a Woodpigeon
Weight
136–314 gAbout the weight of a large apple
Lifespan
4 years
Rarity
Common
M vs F
Males have a blue-grey head and tail with a black terminal band; females are russet-brown all over with barred tail
Habitat
Farmland, grassland, motorway verges, moorland, coastal cliffs — anywhere with short grass and small mammals
Best time
Year-round
Conservation
UK: Amber
LC
💡 Did you know?
The Kestrel is the only UK bird that routinely hovers — holding perfectly still in mid-air facing into the wind, watching for vole movements in the grass below
Kestrels can see UV light — vole urine, which glows in ultraviolet, makes the runways of voles visible from above, letting kestrels target the most active hunting areas
Often confused with
Merlin (compact
no hovering
streaky)
Sparrowhawk (rounded wings
dashes through cover)
Hobby (sleek
long wings)
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