No big deal if you’ve seen one. They are supposedly very common. But I’d never seen one and suddenly there was this handsome little guy right outside my window.
Kestrels are North America’s smallest raptor and are a type of falcon. Beautifully marked and colored. And as it happens, raptors are my favorite birds aside from, maybe, cardinals.
My phone was within reach so I went to full zoom and got a couple of shots. Not very good, as you can see. And as I was trying to move closer, he disappeared. Still, his brief appearance on my porch really lifted my spirits. I was sorry to have spooked him off into the storm, with the wind howling and heavy snow coming in almost horizontally, but I’m sure he found another shelter in this neighborhood of homes with porches. Maybe I’ll see him again someday.
