I was privileged to observe the Eurasian Kestrel at the Samish yesterday.
What a neat bird! And there's no question it's a EUKE.

It sat on a wire and, I swear, spotted a rodent in a field 75 yards away,
flew over there and hovered just like an American Kestrel, stooped and
picked up a critter that was so heavy the bird had trouble flying.

But the story of this bird gets curiouser and curiouser! A band on the
upper left leg? A couple people reported that (I didn't see it). Another
(respected) observer said it also has a malformed right foot -- jesse
escape? Somebody reports there is a falconer in Surrey, B.C., that raises
EUKE's.

But observers say the band wasn't there yesterday! ???? And somebody says
it was banded at the Samish. Was that speculation? Or do we know that for
sure -- who was the bander? and how was the bird captured? Is the upper leg
a normal place for a band? Is that where falconers place bands?

Maybe the bird was banded from the grassy knoll? Did anybody see any
surface-to-air missiles shot at it? Is the bird a Y2K apparition?

Amazing that a vagrant (or escaped) falcon just happens to find the best
piece of winter
falcon habitat in North America. Or is it that the Samish is so heavily
birded that this one
vagrant out of 10,000 that wander to N.A. is the only one noticed because
it stumbles on the Samish? Patagonia Picnic Table effect?

Jerry Blinn
Silverdale
<jerry at avisys.net>
web site: <www.avisys.net>