To me this sounds like nest defense behavior. Probably it was an adult protecting territory.
I have seen kestrels in Colorado exhibit similar behavior towards Swainson's Hawks, so it's probably not unique to this bird.
As for why they are there, there are Kestrels all over urban areas! I have noticed downtown in Canton and around Camden Yards that they often feed on dragonflies and other large insects in early evening, so there's certainly food for them!
Mike H.
Baltimore City
On Aug 8, 2012, at 12:48 PM, Jason Berry <jgbrc...> wrote:
>
> Every day I look for the Kestrel(s) that nested at the intersection of T and 17th St. N.W. when I bike home. Normally one is perched somewhere up on an antenna of either on the building at the SW intersection or one of the nearby buildings.
>
> In any case yesterday I observed some really smart behavior on part of the Kestrel: initially it was perched up on the building antennas minding it's own business.Then came one of the neighborhood crows and was chased off. What happened next was very surprising. Instead of flying off, it went under the eves and into the cavity where the pair of Kestrels nested back in May/June. The crow swooped down to harass it, but it couldn't get in and the little Kestrel just looked out from it's little fort. The standoff continued as I left.
>
> First, I wonder if this was the young bird that has stuck around since the parents left, or is it the male keeping up a territory?
> Is this usual behavior, but just new to me?
> What in the world could this bird be eating in the urban neighborhood? Of course it's even stranger to think a Kestrel pair thought there was enough food here to raise (successfully) a little brood.
> Good Birding everyone!
>
> Jason Berry
> Washington, DC Kestrel Behavior
>
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