Red-footed Falcon (Falco vespertinus)

Measurements: 0.29-0.31m long; wingspan 0.66-0.78m

Id: Smaller than Kestrel, about size of Hobby; slim build and thin, pointed wings recall Hobby, but tail longer. Male unmistakable, dark grey with chestnut under tail-coverts; female grey above with barred wings, underparts buff with narrow streaks; small black face-mask.

Once Rooks have finished breeding early in the year, their treetop nests often play host to new tenants later on in the summer: Red-footed Falcons. These migratory raptors arrive on the steppes, meadows and riverside trees of Eastern Europe from late April onwards, and they have two main requirements for their stay: an abundant supply of large insects; and plenty of nests placed close together, the latter to cater for their habit of forming colonies. In common with other falcons, Red-footed Falcons don’t build their own nest structure, so they have to make do with what is available. That’s why Rooks’ nests, placed high in a tree and near to fields and meadows, are ideal for them. If no such nests are available, they will breed as single pairs.

By Andy Morffew, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=61980669

In terms of shape and behaviour the Red-footed Falcon looks rather like a cross between a Kestrel and a Hobby. Although it is graceful in the air, well able to swoop and soar like a Hobby, it is also a habitual hoverer, like a Kestrel. It is in fact quite a versatile hunter, swooping low and catching insects in flight; hovering over and dropping on to the ground; perching on wires and scanning the ground; and sometimes trotting along on the ground itself. Adult Red-footed Falcons feed mainly on large insects, particularly grasshoppers; but for a short time in the breeding season they feed their young on small mammals such as voles and mice, or fledgling birds.

From August onwards Red-footed Falcons begin their long migratory flight back to Southern Africa. Once there they often gather in large concentrations to feed on swarms of insects, in the company of Hobbies and Lesser Kestrels.

From ‘Birds: A Complete Guide to All British and European Species’, by Dominic Couzens. Published by Collins and reproduced with permission.