Hot on the heels of sending in his recent Nature Notes, Andrew Wilson spotted a female kestrel hunting in his garden before it flew off into the nearby railway embankment. It’s the first kestrel observed in the vicinity for over six months.

Although a common sight, the number of kestrels declined in the 1970’s, leading to its inclusion on the Amber List. According to the RSPB website there are currently 46,000 breeding pairs in the UK.

Voles are by far the most important food for kestrels, although they regularly take other small mammals such as woodmice and shrews, small birds, insects and earthworms. In towns they take birds more frequently because of lower availability of small mammals. 

A kestrel is capable of locating its prey at remarkable distances – it can see and catch a beetle 50 m from its perch. Kestrels need to eat 4-8 voles a day, depending on the time of the year and the amount of energy-consuming hover-hunting they do. They have a habit of catching several voles in succession and caching some for later. 

We’d like to hear from you if you spot any interesting birds or animals in and around the villages – please contact either Andrew or the website using the details below.

Andrew Wilson – andrew.wilson25@btinternet.com

E&E Post Admin – embsayandeastbypost@gmail.com