American kestrel, "Gypsy"

Falco sparvarius

 

Gypsy is a female American kestrel. She has blue feathers on her head. Her wings and tail are a rusty or rufous color with thin black stripes. She weighs approximately 110 grams and stands 9 inches tall, about the size of a blue jay. The male, like males of most other raptor species, is a bit smaller than the female.

The American kestrel is the smallest falcon species in North America and the only one that is native to (lives year-round) in Florida. She is also the smallest bird of prey in Florida.

In 2004, St. Francis Wildlife received a phone call about a kestrel that was dive-bombing people in a Tallahassee neighborhood. When Jon Johnson arrived, the kestrel flew down to him. This was not normal behavior for a wild bird!  It was clear that this little falcon was imprinted.

When a baby bird is raised by humans it may be physically healthy, but it will have a "psychological" problem known as "imprinting." Imprinting is the process where a baby bird (one to four weeks old) learns to identify with its care giver and mirror its behaviors. A bird that is raised by people does not realize that it's a bird. It does not learn how to hunt and may even attempt to mate with its human care giver.

When St. Francis Wildlife receives orphaned baby birds, we take great care to raise them with others of their own kind so that they don't imprint on humans.

Because she can't live in the wild, Gypsy became a member of our Wild Classroom education program. She travels to schools and takes part in public outreach events to teach people about kestrels and the importance of leaving baby birds with their natural parents.

If a baby bird appears to be orphaned and its parents or nest can not be located, please call St. Francis Wildlife.