What's cuter than a baby bird? Easy, a baby falcon!

Pictured here is a freshly hatched American kestrel. The American kestrel, or Falco sparverius for you lovers of Latin or budding ornithologists, is the smallest of our native North American falcons. 

Although the American kestrel is the most common and widespread falcon in the U.S., its populations are in decline throughout most of the country, including the Northeast.  Since these birds are cavity nesters--meaning they lay their eggs in holes in trees or other crevices--they will often nest in appropriately sized wooden nesting boxes.  The baby bird pictured here was hatched inside a wooden nesting box that Conservancy staff installed on a private property.

Learn how to build a kestrel box here

And if you don't have the right habitat for kestrels, put up a box anyway,  as the same size box is often used by screech owls!  But please, do not handle baby birds as you could cause them more harm than good. The bird shown above was handled by a trained professional; for your safety and that of the birds, please do not try this at home!

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