Birds of prey · Netherlands
Common Kestrel
Torenvalk · Falco tinnunculus
Through my lens
The falcon that hangs in the wind
Kestrels can hang almost motionless over one spot, wings beating fast and tail fanned, while the head stays dead still and the eyes stay on the grass below.
Males have a blue-grey head and tail and a chestnut back with dark spots. Females are brown and barred all over. Both have the thin dark stripe under the eye that many falcons share.
They hunt mostly voles and mice, plus large insects and the occasional small bird, over meadows, dunes and road verges. For a nest they use old crows' nests, ledges on buildings and nest boxes.
Selected work
Featured photographs
