I was surprised to see that I’ve published only two kestrel photos so far, the cute one last May and the couple in November. They show up occasionally at the nature preserve, but since they aren’t that much bigger than robins, they can be hard to find when there’s foliage around.

Kestrels are the smallest of falcons, and their markings — the stripes on their head and the dots on their orange plumage — make them look pretty tough, as petite as they are. I have photographs of them being pretty tough and someday I’ll post one. But even just sitting on a branch scanning for their next meal, they have a presence.

March 10, 2019. Nikon D7100 (DX sensor), Tamron 100–400mm lens at 400mm (35mm equivalent: 600mm), f/6.7, 1/500, ISO 560.