The Quiet Disappearance of the American Kestrel

By Clara Elliott, Naturalist and Wildlife Educator

The American kestrel is a small presence in a big landscape, easy to overlook unless you know how and where to look. About the size of a scrub jay, with long, pointed wings and a narrow tail, it is the smallest falcon in North America and among the most vividly marked. Males carry slate blue wings and a wash of rust across their backs, while females are slightly larger, patterned in warm browns with barring across the chest. Both wear dark facial stripes that help reduce glare as they hunt. For generations, kestrels hovered over open fields, holding themselves briefly against the wind while scanning the ground below. That moment of stillness, once familiar along roadsides and grasslands, is becoming increasingly rare. This decline in population is not immediately obvious. Kestrels are small, quiet, and far less visible than the larger raptors many people recognize more readily.

In Santa Cruz County, this decline appears in an unexpected way. Between 2007 and 2025, Native Animal Rescue received just 33 American kestrels into care. In many years, no kestrels were admitted at all. At first glance, this low number might suggest kestrels are doing well. In reality, it reflects how rarely kestrels are encountered and how few survive long enough, or are found in time, to reach rehabilitation.

This pattern stands in sharp contrast to other raptors admitted during the same period. Over those 18 years, Native Animal Rescue received more than 1,300 raptors overall, with annual admissions increasing from roughly 50 birds per year to a peak of more than 130 birds in 2022. Much of this increase was driven by larger, more adaptable species. Red-tailed Hawk admissions rose from single digits in early years to a high of 47. Great Horned Owl admissions followed a similar trajectory, reaching 39 birds in 2024. Cooper’s Hawks and Red-shouldered Hawks also showed sustained increases over time.

American kestrels did not follow this pattern. Despite the overall rise in raptor admissions, kestrel intakes remained consistently low, typically zero to three birds per year. Their absence from rehabilitation data mirrors what long-term monitoring programs have documented across California and North America.

In California, American kestrel populations have declined by an estimated 68 percent since monitoring began in the 1960s. These declines are most pronounced in coastal and agricultural landscapes, the very habitats kestrels depend most on. Against that backdrop, the small number of kestrels admitted to Native Animal Rescue over nearly two decades reflects not stability, but scarcity. Fewer birds on the landscape means fewer opportunities for rescue and fewer chances to intervene when injuries occur.

Habitat loss is a major driver of this decline. Kestrels rely on open grasslands, coastal terraces, and low-intensity agricultural fields with clear sight lines for hunting. Development, vineyard expansion, and increasingly intensive farming continue to fragment these open spaces. This fragmentation reduces prey availability and hunting success. At the same time, the removal of dead trees, old orchards, and older structures has sharply reduced the number of natural nesting cavities kestrels require to breed successfully.

Food availability has also shifted. Kestrels feed on insects, small mammals, and reptiles, all of which are affected by pesticide use and altered land management. Rodenticides pose a particularly serious threat. Kestrels can be poisoned indirectly when they consume contaminated prey, and even low-level exposure can impair coordination and hunting ability, making survival unlikely.

When an American kestrel does arrive at Native Animal Rescue, it represents more than an individual patient. Each case offers rare insight into the pressures facing this species in Santa Cruz County. The consistently low number of kestrels admitted, even as overall raptor admissions increased, is not a sign of safety. It is a reminder of how quietly decline can occur and how many birds are lost beyond our view.

Protecting kestrels means protecting the open spaces they rely on, reducing rodenticide use, preserving nesting opportunities, and recognizing that absence itself is data. When fewer kestrels are seen, the question is not whether they are struggling, but why, and what can still be done to change that trajectory.

Santa Cruz residents can help American kestrels by reducing the pressures that make survival difficult for this small falcon. Protecting open grasslands and field edges, supporting local land conservation, and preserving nesting opportunities can all make a meaningful difference. Reducing pesticide use helps maintain the insects and small animals kestrels depend on for food, while slowing down on rural roads and calling Native Animal Rescue when an injured raptor is found can prevent avoidable deaths. With thoughtful choices and shared attention, our communities can help ensure kestrels remain part of Santa Cruz County’s open skies.