American Kestrel vs Merlin

Falco sparverius compared with Falco columbarius

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	American Kestrel	Merlin
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Chordata (Chordates)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class same	Aves (Birds)	Aves (Birds)
Order same	Falconiformes (Falconiformes)	Falconiformes (Falconiformes)
Family same	Falconidae	Falconidae
Genus same	Falco	Falco
Species	Falco sparverius	Falco columbarius

Evolutionary Relationship

American Kestrel and Merlin share a common ancestor at the Genus level: Falco.

Conservation Status

American Kestrel

LC — Least Concern

Merlin

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	American Kestrel	Merlin
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

American Kestrel

Habitat

Typically found in various aerial, terrestrial, and aquatic environments.

Range

Widely distributed across Europe (6 countries), North America (United States), and South America (Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela).

Merlin

Habitat

Typically found in various aerial, terrestrial, and aquatic environments.

Range

Widely distributed across Europe (5 countries), North America (United States), and South America (Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela).

American Kestrel

American Kestrel (Falco sparverius) is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List. Widespread and abundant across its range, with stable populations and no immediate conservation concerns.

Merlin

Merlin (Falco columbarius) is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List. Widespread and abundant across its range, with stable populations and no immediate conservation concerns.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 7 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇨🇴 Colombia 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇪🇨 Ecuador 🇳🇴 Norway 🇺🇸 United States 🇻🇪 Venezuela