Formerly called the Pigeon Hawk, this medium-sized, dark falcon sports angular wings, indistinct sideburns. and a very direct flight. Merlins are about 10" long with a 21-27" wingspan. They usually fly low over vegetation and are often aggressive to other birds in flight. Although Merlins are dark overall, the upper parts are bluish in the male and brownish in the female. Merlins exhibit a wide variety of elaborate aerial maneuvers.

Merlins summer in a variety of habitats, including forest edges, farmland and urban areas. During winter, they can be found on coastal lowlands, prairies and marshes.

These falcons use a sudden burst of speed to catch birds in midflight. They also prey on rodents, lizards, snakes, and insects.

Open woods or wooded prairies are where Merlins like to nest. They usually use the abandoned nest of another bird, a cavity in a tree or cliff, or a nest on the ground.

Merlins are partial migrants; some are year-round residents of their breeding range, others winter in the U.S., Mexico or Central America, with some going as far south as South America. Of those birds that do migrate, the females fly south before the males.

Raptors: The Birds of Prey - An Almanac of Hawks, Eagles, and Falcons of the World, by Scott Weidensaul, Lyons & Burford, Publishers, © 1996.

Hawks, Eagles & Falcons of North America, by Paul A. Johnsgaard, Smithsonian Institution Press, © 1990.

Hawks in Flight, by Pete Dunne, David Sibley, and Clay Sutton, Houghton Mifflin Co., © 1988.