defence dept kestrel

[jude hopwood <>]

Dear All,

 

October 13th I posted info sent to me on a kestrel in Defence Central.  Her establishment of the 1 metre exclusion zone is clever.  Is it well documented that the male removes the heads of prey before feeding his mate?  If so, have conclusions about clean nesting habits been reached?  How does a kestrel know what a glass screen means in terms of her own and nestlings safety?  Surely they must have to practise these behaviours to know they are safe from the humans?  How long does this kind of learned behaviour take?  Where can I find answers to all my questions?  No info on hatching dates provided, sorry.

 

The mother kestrel had three eggs. She now has two hatchlings and we don't know what happened to the third egg.
As you can see she gives us some serial killer stares but isn't too fussed about us as long as we stay about a metre from the glass. The male is more jittery but he generally just delivers the food (why rip the heads off all the birds before delivery?) and goodies and she stays home and feeds the kids.

 

I'm sorry I can't post the photos.  I've tried to reduce the sizes but can't manage less than 176kB.

 

Jude