{"id":75886,"date":"2020-12-07T05:29:29","date_gmt":"2020-12-07T12:29:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=75886"},"modified":"2025-11-23T05:29:58","modified_gmt":"2025-11-23T11:29:58","slug":"female-american-kestrels-on-the-same-post-ten-years-apart","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2020\/12\/07\/female-american-kestrels-on-the-same-post-ten-years-apart\/","title":{"rendered":"Female American Kestrels On The Same Post Ten Years Apart"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"AdultAdult female American Kestrel perched on an old post – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/1250, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light, not baited
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

I took this photo of an adult female American Kestrel last week at Farmington Bay WMA as she perched on a wooden post next to the marsh.<\/p>\n

I was only going to share this image today but as I processed this photo I thought about all the times I have photographed American Kestrels on this same exact post over the years.<\/p>\n

I moved to Utah in the summer of 2009 and started photographing birds on this post that fall.<\/p>\n

\"AmericanAmerican Kestrel female sitting on signpost \u2013 Nikon D200, f7.1, 1\/1250, ISO 320, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 400mm, natural light, not baited<\/span><\/p>\n

In the winter of 2009 and 2010 I’d often see American Kestrels on this wooden post and in February of 2010 I had a morning where a female American Kestrel was very cooperative on that post where I took a couple of hundred photos of her as she preened, stretched and looked around.<\/p>\n

There was snow on the ground that morning which made the background look different than it does in the first photo above but the post has the same notch in it on the left side.<\/p>\n

I wonder how many kestrels have eaten meals on top of that post in all the years I have been photographing them on it.<\/p>\n

\"FluffedFluffed up female American Kestrel \u2013 Nikon D200, f7.1, 1\/640, ISO 320, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 400mm, natural light, not baited<\/span><\/p>\n

This is the same female kestrel that is in the second photo after she turned her back to me and then looked at me over her shoulder.<\/p>\n

With a life expectancy of ten to fifteen years it is<\/em> possible that the kestrel in the first and second photo are the same bird because kestrels do show territorial site fidelity and American Kestrels<\/span><\/a> are year round residents here in northern Utah but I’m guessing that they are two individual females.<\/p>\n

Perhaps the female I photographed last week is the daughter or granddaughter of the kestrel I photographed in 2010. Without bands I can’t be sure.<\/p>\n

My gear has changed a lot since 2010. My admiration, respect, and love of these tiny falcons, has only intensified.<\/p>\n

Life is<\/em> good.<\/p>\n

Mia<\/p>\n

Click here<\/span><\/a> to see more of my American Kestrel photos plus facts and information about this species.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I was only going to share this image today but as I processed this photo I thought about all the times I have photographed American Kestrels on this same exact post over the years.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":164604,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[152,27,1022,697,26],"tags":[4004,155,4199,4078,4279,4070,4309,6276,4892,10708,4094,4104,10707,10706,373,8917],"class_list":["post-75886","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-american-kestrel","category-avian","category-davis-county-utah","category-farmington-bay-wma","category-utah","tag-adult","tag-american-kestrel","tag-falco-sparverius","tag-falcon","tag-falcons","tag-female","tag-fluffed-up","tag-kestrel","tag-kestrels","tag-life-expectancy","tag-marsh","tag-perched","tag-signpost","tag-territorial-site-fidelity","tag-winter","tag-wooden-post"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/american-kestrel-female-perched-mia-mcpherson-8952.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-jJY","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":109584,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2023\/01\/13\/female-american-kestrel-on-a-tree-top\/","url_meta":{"origin":75886,"position":0},"title":"Female American Kestrel On A Tree Top","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"January 13, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"I spent a few moments photographing a gorgeous female American Kestrel on a tree top yesterday morning at Farmington Bay WMA.","rel":"","context":"In "American Kestrels"","block_context":{"text":"American Kestrels","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/falcons\/american-kestrel\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Saucy looking female American Kestrel, Farmington Bay WMA, Davis County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/american-kestrel-female-tree-top-mia-mcpherson-8016.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/american-kestrel-female-tree-top-mia-mcpherson-8016.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, 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Kestrels","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/falcons\/american-kestrel\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"American Kestrel Get Off My Lawn look, Farmington Bay WMA, Davis County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/american-kestrel-female-get-off-my-lawn-look-mia-mcpherson-2637.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/american-kestrel-female-get-off-my-lawn-look-mia-mcpherson-2637.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/american-kestrel-female-get-off-my-lawn-look-mia-mcpherson-2637.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/american-kestrel-female-get-off-my-lawn-look-mia-mcpherson-2637.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 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Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/american-kestrel-female-prey-mia-mcpherson-5625.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/american-kestrel-female-prey-mia-mcpherson-5625.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/american-kestrel-female-prey-mia-mcpherson-5625.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":75314,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2020\/11\/13\/merlin-and-american-kestrels-two-falcon-species-in-a-day\/","url_meta":{"origin":75886,"position":3},"title":"Merlin And American Kestrels – Two Falcon Species In A Day","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"November 13, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Any time I can see and photograph two falcon species in a single day is a great day and yesterday I photographed a Prairie Merlin and several American Kestrels.","rel":"","context":"In "American Kestrels"","block_context":{"text":"American Kestrels","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/falcons\/american-kestrel\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Female Prairie Merlin perched in a tree, Farmington Bay WMA, Davis County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/merlin-female-adult-perched-mia-mcpherson-2200.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/merlin-female-adult-perched-mia-mcpherson-2200.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/merlin-female-adult-perched-mia-mcpherson-2200.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, 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2017","format":false,"excerpt":"I've seen people struggle with seeing the differences between male and female American Kestrels and I hope this simple comparison will help.","rel":"","context":"In "American Kestrels"","block_context":{"text":"American Kestrels","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/falcons\/american-kestrel\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Female and Male American Kestrel Comparison, Farmington Bay WMA, Davis County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/american-kestrel-female-male-mia-mcpherson-2801-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/american-kestrel-female-male-mia-mcpherson-2801-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, 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