Species-Specific Management (SSM)

American Kestrel (Sparrowhawk)

American Kestrel (Sparrowhawk)

The American kestrel, Falco sparverius, once commonly called the "sparrowhawk", is a valuable part of the ecosystem of the southern Appalachian forest.. The kestrel is the smallest American falcon and is abundant in areas characterized by scattered trees, woodlots, shelterbelts, meadows, highway and powerline rights-of-way, pastures, and hay fields. Kestrels are commonly thought of as a beneficial species in North America because of their feeding behavior on rodents and insects.

Although kestrels do not need intensive mangement to thrive, there are many things that forest and wildlife managers can do in order to increase their populations.

Species Needs

• The primary management concern for kestrels is space. At least 950 acres are needed for nonbreeding kestrels to forage. They are not adversely affected by human disturbance and commonly thrive on agricultural lands and roadsides.
• Also of primary concern is the presence of prey species. Kestrel populations, like most temperate hawks, are regulated by the abundance of prey species available. Common prey species are: insects, small rodents, lizards, and small birds. Managers can readily increase these prey populations

Management Practices

1. Keep highway right-of-ways mowed 6-10 inches in order to enable the kestrel to forage.
2. Planting hedgerows between opposite-direction traffic lanes (and within wildlife clearings) may provide many rodent populations foraging and hiding cover and will thrive, providing a food source for the kestrels.
3. Hedgerows and windbreaks should be planted along the edges of agricultural and forest fields to provide perching sites and prey cover adjacent to foraging areas. Desirable plant species can include: fescue, birdsfoot trefoil, multiflora rose, grape, black locust, sycamore, and white pine.
4. Encourage agriculturists not to plow under fall crops or to plant winter crops in order to keep cover on fields all year around. This practice will provide cover and foraging habitat for prey species. Keep grasses and forbs less than 10 inches in height.
5. Leave brush piles on edges of agricultural fields and roadways for prey cover.
6. Management suggestions for snags are:
   • Recognition:intermediate (twigs absent, main limbs approximately one yard long, approximately 33% bark remaining).
   • 12 - 16 inch DBH.
   • preferably (in southern areas)long leaf pine (Pinus palustris).
   • 1 snag per 2 acres.
   • Manage long stand rotations.
   • Girdle trees.
   • Prohibit snag cutting.
   • Manage for medium sized woodpeckers and flickers.
7. Protect from humans during nesting periods by:
   • using vegetative buffer zones.
   • prohibiting people into the area during this time.
8. Electrical wires and their poles are primary perching sites. Kestrels often use high perches which can be provided to watch for prey on the ground.
9. Build nest boxes (similar to those for gray squirrels):
   • facing south or east
   • 10 - 35 feet from the ground
   • with an unrestricted flight path to the box
   • with metal sleeves (3 foot girdle) placed on pole or tree to keep mammalian predators out
   • adjacent to areas used for foraging.
10. Create perches by:
    • planting trees
    • placing fence posts
    • placing used utility poles
11. Discourage use of pesticides, especially on the edges of agricultural fields in order to increase the number of insects present for kestrels.
12. Build and install nest boxes on the back of information signs on interstates.
13. Remind people that starlings compete with kestrels for nest sites in boxes, and, further, that starlings are an unprotected species.
14. Place signs throughout known nesting habitat warning people that there is a nesting kestrels area nearby and disturbance may warrant retaliation by the birds.
15. Educate the public that it is illegal to harm or kill any raptors, which includes the kestrel. Encourage birdwatching instead.
16. Obtain land for management by:
    • conservation easements
    • donations
    • leases
    • land purchase
17. Target education to new audiences such as:
    • land owners
    • timber industries
    • land developers
18. Designate habitat areas on land-use maps. Stress human benefits including:
    • pleasure
    • sustaining populations for future generations
    • moral ethics (it is the right thing to do).
19. Enforce laws that:
    • are enforceable by officials
    • include strict penalties
    • involve voluntary citizen action
20. Create "watch dog" organizations that monitor:
    • pesticides
    • heavy metals
    • unusual mortality
    • The birds themselves, plotting adjusted count changes over time
21. Describe the consequences in the future of a major change in the population (e.g., resulting from global warming, ozone effects, pollution)
22. Coordinate intra-agency management by involving employees from various levels to develop policies. Do inter-agency planning and work with inter-agency committees. Develop funding for management by:
    • implementing tax refund check offs
    • lobbying
23. Participate by action or contribution in kestrel research.

Other information on the falcons and the kestrel is available..

Contributions by Jennifer C. Allen (1992), Michael T. Maslanka (1992), and Julia Korndorfer (1991), Department of Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA 24061