Fall 2004

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Kestrel grabs meals at birdhouses

BWS managers Trudie and Jim McFall of Auburn are used to visits from predator birds like Cooper’s and sharp-shinned hawks, but this year they witnessed a colorful male American kestrel grab house sparrow nestlings right out of their birdhouses.

The kestrel first landed on the front of a birdhouse, looked in, then stuck his long leg inside, pulled out a baby sparrow in his talons, and flew off with it. The kestrel came back repeatedly for the next few weeks and systematically stole at least eight young birds out of three birdhouses.

“He even took an adult female sparrow that had unfortunate timing,” Trudie wrote. “She had just popped into her nest to feed her young when he swooped up, stuck his leg in and pulled her out biting and screaming. She put up such a fight that he landed on one of our inactive birdhouses and killed and plucked her right there.”

At first Trudie was upset, but ex-falconer Jim reminded her that “this is nature’s way and not everyone is lucky enough to watch it happen right before their eyes.” He figured that the kestrel had a nest somewhere nearby and was feeding his own brood.

WDFW wildlife biologist Howard Ferguson says that was likely the case, and notes that such behavior is normal for falcons, which hunt with their talons. “They catch birds on the wing using their feet,” he said, “so reaching into a nestbox is comparatively simple.”

Ferguson also notes that house sparrows are exotics that aggressively compete with native birds for food and nest space, so the kestrel was actually “doing needed population control.” For those who want to protect birds from such predation, Ferguson recommends adding simple nestbox hole guards (block extensions) to make the entrance deeper.