Kestrel chicks

I  think I’m turning into a bit of a twitcher …..

Allyson, a friend who lives in nearby village, recently found herself playing host to two separate pairs of kestrels. They've laid their eggs on two different windowsills of her house! Lucky enough to have one nesting pair, let alone two. 

Her house is quite high overlooking the village and the countryside so ideal launching pads for them. The shutters on one of the windows are kept shut, but she’s taped cardboard over the one in the living room, so that you can quietly view from a gap at the side. It’s amazing to be able to see them literally inches away on the other side of the glass. 

So last evening a few of us went over to see all four of the week old chicks – they’re little bundles of fluff. The parents were making intermittent visits with food, and after I stood motionless for nearly 10 minutes with camera at the ready, I was rewarded with an amazing couple of shots of a freshly killed mouse being brought back to the chicks. 

There will be several more visits over the next few weeks before they literally fly the nest…. watch this space!

Note the little mouse legs to the right of the picture!