On today's "First Thursday" walk at Las Gallinas (San Rafael, CA) we ventured out to find the Tropical Kingbird, which has been flycatching from the snags at the end of the open field, just before the path swings left to go north. No Kingbird today, as the same snag was adopted by a Merlin,Falco columbarius. If I were that Kingbird I wouldn't be returning any time soon, as the Merlin is a fearsome predator of birds.
Note the streaks on the chest, and the very weak mustachial stripe.
The shot above shows the white superciliary line better.
Merlins are fast powerful predators. At about 12" they are a bit larger than the American Kestrel, but as we read in Hawks in Flight (Dunne, Sibley, Sutton): "A Merlin is to a Kestrel as a Harley Davidson motorcycle is to a scooter."
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