American Sparrow Hawk

The American Kestrel is the smallest falcon in North America, as well as the most familiar and widespread. In open country it is commonly seen perched on roadside wires, or hovering low over a field on rapidly beating wings, waiting to pounce on a grasshopper. The kestrel nests in tree cavities; in places where there are few large dead snags to provide nest sites, they may rely on nesting boxes put up for them by conservationists.