In mid March OWNS installed 21 nest boxes for American Kestrels around vineyards and orchards in the Okanagan from Kelowna to Osoyoos. In conjunction with Warne in the Wild and The Starling Control Program, this project aims to provide local fruit and grape growers with a natural pest deterrant by attracting nesting kestrels to their properties. By having participants monitoring their boxes throughout the breeding season we are also providing demographic data for the American Kestrel Partnership. Providing more boxes and monitoring them ensures that more nesting opportunities are available for this species in our region which are often out-competed by other cavity nesters, particularly starlings which begin nesting earlier.
Kestrel populations have declined by about 50% across North America in the last 60 years, with some areas seeing much steeper declines. The trend is uncertain in our region (considered part of the Great Basin) due to insufficient data, which is why continued monitoring and not just provision of boxes or habitat is so important.
To learn more about this project, head over to that page of our website: American Kestrel Nest Box Project.
Okanagan Wildlife & Nature Society 