Home > Illustration > Wildlife > Birds > Birds of Prey > American Kestrel

American Kestrel

American Kestrel line art illustration (click image to enlarge)

American Kestrel full color illustration (click image to enlarge)

Artist's notes:

The American Kestrel was completed on 11/23/2009. I was recently in Arizona and saw a kestrel in a tree, then when hiking back in the Bay Area we saw another one. The sightings reminded me I had yet to draw one of these handsome birds of prey. The drawing was more challenging then I had anticipated but I'm happy with the results. The drawing is based on a photo by Ron Wolf.

Information about the American Kestrel:

The American Kestrel is a small falcon widely distributed across the Americas. In some areas the kestrel is called the 'Sparrow Hawk.' They feed on insects, lizards, small mammals and birds. They are the smallest falcon in North America - being not much larger than a robin. Rarely these birds are found in western Europe. They are found in open areas when they can hunt prey, but they're also found in parks, suburbs, open fields, forest edges and openings, alpine zones, grasslands, marshes, prairies, deserts with large cacti, and freeway and highway corridors. While they are skilled hunters they will occasionally steal prey from other birds and even other of their own species.