(Oh my, I forgot to hit "Publish" last week!! I'm still learning!)
This week's topic a very cool falcon. I won't rehash the life history of the bird, you can find that info here. The American Kestrel (AMKE) is in decline throughout most of its range due to habitat loss. One of the things we can do to help the AMKE is provide suitable nestboxes in high quality habitat to encourage successful breeding. Providing new nestboxes and monitoring the AMKE is one of the projects I am starting on the farm where I work. Last year, we had a bird attempt to nest in an old, broken down nestbox that was put up about 20 years ago. The box ended up getting taken over by starlings and I am unsure of the fate of the nest.
This winter, the guys at the farm have been working to build 3 new AMKE boxes. I was able to catch up with someone I went to grad school with who now works in Ohio and has been apart of an initiative to put up AMKE boxes to help the population. She pointed me in the right direction for some good information.
We may do some trapping and banding of the resident AMKEs on the farm and I'll also be monitoring these 3 boxes throughout the summer. Stay tuned for updates on these awesome birds!
Happy birding,
Missy
This week's topic a very cool falcon. I won't rehash the life history of the bird, you can find that info here. The American Kestrel (AMKE) is in decline throughout most of its range due to habitat loss. One of the things we can do to help the AMKE is provide suitable nestboxes in high quality habitat to encourage successful breeding. Providing new nestboxes and monitoring the AMKE is one of the projects I am starting on the farm where I work. Last year, we had a bird attempt to nest in an old, broken down nestbox that was put up about 20 years ago. The box ended up getting taken over by starlings and I am unsure of the fate of the nest.
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| This is a (horrible) picture of an AMKE with eggs in our old nestbox. |
This winter, the guys at the farm have been working to build 3 new AMKE boxes. I was able to catch up with someone I went to grad school with who now works in Ohio and has been apart of an initiative to put up AMKE boxes to help the population. She pointed me in the right direction for some good information.
Here is one of the new boxes that we will be putting out in March. We used this plan, which seems pretty standard based on my research. The side opening door will make for easier checks once a bird has started to nest.
We may do some trapping and banding of the resident AMKEs on the farm and I'll also be monitoring these 3 boxes throughout the summer. Stay tuned for updates on these awesome birds!
Happy birding,
Missy
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