Merlin

Last winter at Duke Farms I encountered a Merlin. No, I don't mean a wizard; I'm talking about a falcon that's a bit bigger than our American Kestrels. (As I recall, after taking this picture I think I thought I had gotten a picture of a kestrel, but when I processed the picture I realized I had their bigger cousin instead.)

Merlins have only a slightly larger length and wingspan than American Kestrels but must be a little stockier since they weigh over 50% more. Though my field guide says they're both uncommon, I've gotten far more kestrel pictures compared to Merlin pictures (25-3) [1].

The Merlin is a Northern Hemisphere species, residing mostly in Eurasia and North America [2], though different areas have different subspecies. New Jersey has the Taiga Merlin subspecies.

While some places put out kestrel boxes to encourage them to nest there, Merlins don't compete for those boxes since they mostly breed up in Canada. It's probably a good thing for our kestrels that Merlins don't breed here; Merlins are described as "fierce falcons", and would probably use their size and ferocity to win any disputes with their smaller cousins.

February 9, 2023 at Duke Farms
Photo 263480760, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)


[1] While All About Birds says they're rarely in New Jersey during migration, my field guide implies they'll winter here more often than that.

[2] Their range does extend into very northern parts of South America and Africa too.

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