The Wrack
The Wrack is the Wells Reserve blog.
Reserve Partners with York County Audubon to Aid the American Kestrel
Few species (in this writer’s opinion) in the avian class are as intriguing, graceful, and beautiful as the American Kestrel. Even its scientific name (Falco sparverius) has a musical quality to it. Nature lovers annually rejoice when this bird, the smallest member of the falcon family, returns to its breeding grounds in Maine. We delight in watching it glide across the landscape or hover helicopter-like over a field as it seeks out its prey of small mammals and insects.
Due to changes in the landscape, the kestrel, like so many other wildlife species, is in decline across its range, particularly in the northeast. The culprit: the open fields the kestrel needs to thrive are in decline, being replaced by buildings or their reversion to forests through natural succession. Another is the lack of suitable nesting cavities.
One way to address this decline is for conservation organizations and private landowners to preserve these habitats through protection efforts and by halting natural succession and maintaining the land as field or pastureland. The Wells Reserve and other conservation organizations have been actively protecting and managing open fields for birds and other wildlife for some time, as well as working with landowners to do the same. Maintaining a diversity of habitats is the key to wildlife conservation, and grasslands and other open environments need to be part of this mix.
The Wells Reserve is thrilled to be an initial collaborator on the new York County Kestrel Partnership (YCKP). A project of York County Audubon (a close partner of the Reserve), the goal of YCKP is to support the American Kestrel population by providing nest boxes in high-quality kestrel habitat.
This April, Dan Gardoqui – one of Maine’s top naturalists and a volunteer with York County Audubon – worked with the Wells Reserve to install its first American Kestrel nesting box in one of its fields. Within a couple of days, one of our regular birders spotted a kestrel perched atop the nest box. Whether one will utilize the nesting box remains to be seen, but we shall be closely monitoring the site.
It is rewarding to be part of this effort to help reverse the decline of this magnificent bird.
For more information about the American Kestrel and efforts to enhance the conservation of this species and aid in nesting success, I highly recommend visiting the websites of the Harris Center for Conservation Education, a leader in this effort.
Resources:
