Simcoe Bird Banding Group

07/21/2026

Here are our final results for the 2026 Kestrel nest box program.

We had a total of 98 boxes out this year . 83 were on Manitoulin Island and 15 in Simcoe County .

A total of 64 boxes were used and 58 boxes were successful in producing chicks that were banded.

We were extremely happy to have exceeded last year high count of 200 with 240 chicks banded.
One nest box was also missed by a couple of days .(Hate when that happens)
It was not as cold and wet at last season and food(primarily Grasshoppers) was in abundance on Manitoulin.

We had a heavy snow load, and it seemed Winter wasn't going to let go and that made it difficult to get out to clean boxes and add fresh wood shavings. We then got a week of unseasonally mild temperatures and heavy rains in mid to the end of April caused extensive flooding !

We did have some heavy rains May through July but temperatures were for the most part better than last season .

The Kestrels seemed to be more elusive than in the past and there was a little skepticism as to how well the success would be.

Simcoe County had fewer boxes used than in past years , and only half (18) the amount of chicks as last year !

There are several possibilities that could have contributed such as human encroachment, heavy Chemical Farm practices , Crop changes or weather.


Manitoulin Island also had fewer boxes used , but a much higher rate of survival(227) than last year.

Farming practices are also changing on Manitoulin and there are more cash crop than in the last 50 years, but it is still largely a Pastoral farm setting which offers much better habitat overall.

Predation was slightly lower and there were fewer added eggs . Although we did have a higher amount of dead chicks in the box .

Sibling Cannibalism was only seen in one box , although this box also had the highest mortality rate . So we are not sure if the surviving chick had killed its nestmates or simply fed of there unfortunate demise!

Every season is different in many ways, but the excitement never wanes!

There are repairs to be made or boxes that may be relocated due to changes in the environment around them and new nest boxes may added in the off season, but we can only do so much.

Numbers at a glance!

Banded :

3 AHY-F
121 M
111 F
8 U
5 Fledged prior to banding.
240/245 Total

Nest Boxes

98 total
64 used
58 successful

Thanks for following along .
We look forward to next season already, but we will move on to the next project and season !

*All banding is done under Federal and Provincial permits by Licensed Banders.

07/18/2026

We wrapped up our Kestrel Nest Box program today banding the final clutch of season and are ready to take a break !

This season has been our most successful in recent years and we need to finish compiling our numbers for the final report !

07/17/2026

What are Falcons ?

For many we always referred to Falcons as a Bird of Prey !

With added research and the use of DNA they are now grouped in the same class as Parrots !

New bird guides will soon reflex this along with other changes that are coming to names.

Here is the Wikipedia version of changes in the Falcons !

The order Falconiformes (/fælˈkɒnɪˌfɔːrmiːz/) is represented by the extant family Falconidae (falcons and caracaras) and a handful of enigmatic Paleogene species. Traditionally, most other diurnal bird of prey families Cathartidae (New World vultures and condors), Sagittariidae (secretarybir...

07/04/2026

We are into the final stretch for our Kestrel nest box program.

The fifteen boxes in the south(SimcoeCounty) unfortunately were not as successful as years past , but we can't control that !

The Northern boxes(Manitoulin Island) are still being checked and have exceeded all expectations thus far !

We have checked 50 that had Kestrels utilize them and still have another 7 or 8 to check this week .

Stay tuned for our final check and the complete report on the season coming in the near future !

06/29/2026

American Kestrel Nest Box Check — June 19 Update

On June 19, we completed our next round of checks on the five boxes that were occupied earlier in the season, aiming to band the nestlings. One box already had two day old hatchlings, and with a stretch of poor weather coming — plus personal commitments — we couldn’t delay the visit any longer.

We were disappointed to find that one box which previously held five eggs was now empty except for a single egg. We had expected hatchlings based on the timing of our earlier check, so this was an unexpected failure.

The remaining four boxes were successful, with all eggs hatched. One nest box was noticeably behind the others: of the five hatchlings, one was too small to band, and the other four were still white fuzz, making s*xing impossible. This was surprising because on the previous check, the egg laying cycle appeared aligned with two other boxes — and in those, only one hatchling out of nine was too young to assign a s*x.

The fifth box was well ahead of all the others — the one we needed to check promptly to avoid missing fledging. The four hatchlings there were easily s*xed and have likely fledged by now.

Overall, 2026 has been a disappointing year in our study area. Occupancy was low, and two occupied boxes failed. The reasons aren’t fully clear yet, but a noticeably late spring was likely a factor. Other pressures — such as pesticide use, farming practices, and the resulting reduced prey availability — continue to shape kestrel success across much of Ontario, and this year appears to be no exception.

Why Cool springs matters for kestrels
• Delay egg laying and incubation
• Reduce prey availability (insects emerge later in cold years)
• Increase nest failure in early attempts
• Create asynchronous broods

Even so, every successful hatch matters — and we’ll continue monitoring to help build the long-term picture of kestrel health in our region.

Based on available finances we hope to add three to five new nest boxes to our study area for the 2027 nesting season.

06/29/2026

A demanding day banding Kestrels !

We elected to band an additional 21 boxes today, as weather this week could interfere . The original plan was 10, but the forecast didn't look favourable !

We are glad we did though!

06/27/2026

We have started the 3rd check of Nest Boxes on Manitoulin Island. We now know which boxes are definitely not being used and can continue to focus our attention on the progress of hatching and hatchllngs !

We have banded 15 boxes thus far and 40 more are candidates to be banded.

Working around weather is alwsys the biggest hurdle.

Early results are quite positive .

06/22/2026

We had mentioned earlier that were considering restarting the Carden Grassland bird project after a couple of years off.
The site is now monitored by Ontario Parks so we had quite a bit of "paperwork" to go through.
Thanks immensely to Jim who relentlessly covered every step to insure our project moves forward.
We decided to check out the site on Saturday after a two year hiatus!
We checked out the first site and found it very quiet. We did manage a few birds, but as it is early in the season we were still optimistic that future sessions would be productive.
The site is still as we expected and other than the birds we saw a few other animals. I got to see my first green snake, and some black bear signs.
We are working on another date for early July.

06/16/2026

We beat the weather and finished checking the remaining Kestrel boxes. Only 9 of 22 in use, but we aren't complaining !

As mentioned in a previous post, we should start banding Nestlings in about a weeks time.

06/15/2026

We were able to check on 30 more Kestrel boxes today with 27 holding American Kestrels in various stages from eggs to 2 week old chicks.

Weather permitting we will check the remaining 22 nest boxes tomorrow !