Shoulda got a Falcon!! lol

Well quick story!!

For those of you who have been following some of my threads, i have a American Kestrel pair that are nesting in a building across the street from my building. I take my Chams out to bask smack dab in the middle of their hunting range. A few months ago i almost lost me male Ambliobe Chance to one of them.

See story here!
https://www.chameleonforums.com/huge-scare-today-almost-lost-chance-79039/

Well i have seen a lottt of activity at the nest the past few weeks. On Saturday i went out to take one of my Chams out and saw a fledgling Kestrel on the ground near a glass elevator bank ( my first though was he flew into the glass and was possibly hurt). I stood back for a bit and just watched him/her. After about 2-3 minutes it moved about a bit, then a dried leaf blew by and he/she pounced on it and tried to eat it. I can see it was hungry!! I looked around for a while and could not see any Adult birds.

I tell you that story to tell you this one!!

So i noticed it was hungry, i looked around to see what would be available for him to eat up here ( this was the 2nd floor garden/court yard of my building.

All i kept thinking was " Mann , he would love a nice fat B.dubia"!!

So , i took my Cham back upstairs and got five large dubia nymphs and headed back down! He was still in the same area.

I plucked the back legs off one of the dubias so it wouldn't run off as fast, and tossed it about 3 feet from the baby Kestrel. He did not hesitate to nab and gobble it down!!

Such a cute bird I wish I could see a few birds like that here. They look so soft...

So now you have a Kestrel!!?

coldbloodedAL said:

So now you have a Kestrel!!?

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Something like that. After eating the first roach i tossed at him, i then offered him/her one out of my hand and it came right up to me and took it .. Did it 4 times!!

All while fiddling with my phone to get a video, only for my phone to see " no more storage space" Super fail moment!!

I came back on Sunday and fed him/her again. It was still on the ground, i placed it in a small tree. Came back on Monday and it was back on the ground.

I took it upstairs yesterday and this morning i had it perched on a Ficus in my living room ( my Cham cages covered).

I took a dubia and tied a string on it's leg and pulled it around the floor about 20 feet away from him. Took him/her some time , but finally flew down and pounced on it and ate it!!

I just wanted to make sure it was able to fly. So today i will take it to Central Park and release it a bit outside of the busy city limits ( less car traffic and more food).

Jon, try the Wild Bird Fund first, they take in all wild birds, office near the Natural History Museum, and they work with The Raptor Trust to do soft-release in wild spaces.

*looks at cham* shoulda got a falcon!
That's awsome man! super awsome experience!

That is so cool!!! Kestrel's are super fascinating. They can see UV and can track down their prey by the little scent marks/pee they leave behind. Pretty cool animal.

Looks like a nice little female

So what happeend? you release her, keep her, wthat what what?
I need to know!!

btw that is an awesome story and great photo.

I used to work at a wildlife rehab place and we had a permanent resident, a red tialed hawk that was so much fun!

camimom said:

So what happeend? you release her, keep her, wthat what what?
I need to know!!

btw that is an awesome story and great photo.

I used to work at a wildlife rehab place and we had a permanent resident, a red tialed hawk that was so much fun!

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I'll be taking her to a wildlife rehab center after work!

Didnt want to have her imprint on me either. She was starting to see me as a source for a meal and would beg!

JonRich said:

I'll be taking her to a wildlife rehab center after work!

Didnt want to have her imprint on me either. She was starting to see me as a source for a meal and would beg!

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sadly.... id want to keep her.
lol.
but i have a big heart for all animals.

well cept spiders..

camimom said:

sadly.... id want to keep her.
lol.
but i have a big heart for all animals.

well cept spiders..

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It would be soo cool if i could have kept her. But i knew it wasnt the right thing!! Plus Chams and a Bird-Of-Prey in the same home = No Bueno!!

I have a healthy respect for ALLL ANIMALS! But mann i dislike handling Horn and Silkworms!

JonRich said:

It would be soo cool if i could have kept her. But i knew it wasnt the right thing!! Plus Chams and a Bird-Of-Prey in the same home = No Bueno!!

I have a healthy respect for ALLL ANIMALS! But mann i dislike handling Horn and Silkworms!

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yea its not.. she needs space. and well. .shed try to eta chance. lol.

i dont mind the hornworms... but the silks annoy me with all the silk they spin.

I cant handle the roaches though.. wont touch them.

I love animals like those... there's a place near me where you can volunteer to temporarily adopt owls and falcons, some other types of animals too. Maybe one day my mother will let me. She likes birds too, just the feeding them live things she hates.