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Kestrel in Flight - Airspeed I am not totally convinced if this specific bird is a Greater Kestrel, or a female Lesser Kestrel. <br /> <br /> Either way, this predatory falcon is supreme in airspeed and agility, preying on little birds. Photographed in Namibia, southwestern Africa. Falco naumanni,Falco rupicoloides,Geotagged,Greater Kestrel,Lesser Kestrel,Namibia,Spring,falcon,flight,fly,focus,quick Click/tap to enlarge PromotedSpecies intro

Kestrel in Flight - Airspeed

I am not totally convinced if this specific bird is a Greater Kestrel, or a female Lesser Kestrel.

Either way, this predatory falcon is supreme in airspeed and agility, preying on little birds. Photographed in Namibia, southwestern Africa.

    comments (3)

  1. View Ferdy Christant's profile
    Ferdy Christant
    Lion
    View Lion class
    Kestrels are amazing. In one documentary, they threw a mouse from a 100m high tower and the kestrel went after it. In that small distance it went straight down, it went well over 200 km/h. Next, about 1 meter above the ground only, it makes a sudden 90 degree turn to avoid getting splashed. True masters of the sky. Posted 10 years ago
    1. View Living Wild's profile
      Living Wild
      Lion
      View Lion class
      They are super raptors indeed. I can totally belief that documentary by just looking at this photograph ... the tail seems rather strong and large, which will give it extreme agility. Sometimes I see these guys in flocks of up to 10, but never managed to get a photograph of them as they are always shooting by. For some reason, this specific Kestrel fly by and "stopped" mid air to have a look at me. Lucky a camera was glued to my hands.

      Thanks for commenting.       Posted 10 years ago
  3. View Natalia Cara's profile
    Natalia Cara
    Lion
    View Lion class
    Beautiful photo, but definitely not a Greater Kestrel. The easiest way to identify them is by the eyes; they are the only ones with light colored eyes (except for the juvenile, but they look very different). Greater Kestrels also have whitish underwings and lack the malar stripe.
    It does look like a female Lesser Kestrel, BUT the tail is different.
    At the moment, female Amur Falcon is my best bet, but I'm not convinced, Do you have another photo?     Posted 9 years ago

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The Lesser Kestrel

The lesser kestrel is a small falcon. This species breeds from the Mediterranean across southern central Asia to China and Mongolia. It is a summer migrant, wintering in Africa and Pakistan and sometimes even to India and Iraq. It is rare north of its breeding range, and declining in its European range.

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Similar species: Falcons And Caracaras
Species identified by Living Wild
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By Living Wild

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Uploaded Jan 30, 2015. Captured Nov 8, 2012 06:34 in D2874, Namibia.
country flag of Namibia Explore Namibia 750 405 0
  • Canon EOS REBEL T2i
  • f/6.3
  • 1/1328s
  • ISO320
  • 300mm