Kaleidescopic Kestrels

I was looking through my Audubon calendar last night and a photograph of an American Kestrel in flight totally got my attention.  What a gorgeous little bird.  Look at the markings on the male.

Source:  Wikipedia

Source:  Wikipedia

The American Kestrel is the smallest and most common falcon in North America at about seven or eight inches long, but is also found throughout Central and South America.  With a diet consisting of insects, small birds and rodents, kestrels can be seen hanging out on telephone wires or poles and hovering in the air looking for prey.

The female has subtler markings, lacks the blue-gray one the wings, with more bars on its tail.

Source:  Wikipedia

There are seventeen recognized subspecies with slightly different coloration patterns.

Maybe I'll be lucky enough to see one some day.  To see a video, click here and here.