Photo copyright Michael Armer Click here for more photos! On Oct 23rd, Tuesday afternoon, Golden Gate Raptor Observatory volunteer banders trapped, banded, and released a juvenile Eurasian Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus) in the late afternoon in the Marin Headlands. This may be the first documented appearance of this species in California, although a Eurasian Kestrel was banded in the Skagit Flats, Washington, in autumn 1999. Although none of us knows if the bird is still in the area (has not been seen as of 5pm 10/24), we at the GGRO request that kestrel-watchers stay on paved roads and atop Hawk Hill in the Marin Headlands, to minimize potential disturbance to our banding and monirtoring operations. Hawk Hill affords the best view of the Headlands skies. This Eurasian Kestrel looks nearly like a female American Kes, though is smudgy in the face markings, and shows only one moustache mark. The size is about halfway between an American Kestrel and a White-tailed Kite. Weighing in at about 208 grams, this bird was twice the weight of an average male American Kestrel.

The GGRO is a program of the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy in cooperation with the National Park Service.