Abstract
From 1987 to 2013 (a total of 27 years) we examined Kestrel chicks and their fledging from nesting colonies in man-made structures in Machida City (Tokyo) and from the southern edge of the Tama hills extending to Aso Ward in Kawasaki City and Aoba Ward in Yokohama City.We also investigated ways to introduce rescued chicks back into the wild with the following results:1. The chicks were about the same size as their parents when they fledged.2. The chicks nesting in man-made structures were considered fledged when they came out of the pipes.3. During the 27 years the chicks on average fledged around June 24 and mainly from 8:30 to 10:00am with none fledging in the afternoon hours.4. During the 27 years, the parents stopped feeding the chicks about 7 days before fledging.5. About 30 minutes after fledging from the pipes of man-made structures, some of the birds took flight and others hid in tree thickets once they landed.6. Those chicks that were still too weak to fly landed and hid in thickets and were fed by the parents for at least 3 days.7. Cotton or rubber gloves were used in handling chicks that needed to be rescued and were put in cardobard boxes with the lids closed until the bird settled down. The birds were released back into the wild at the location where they had been rescued.8. An open area in front of the nest is a neccessary condition for Kestrels to fledge. It appears thatthis is one of the deciding factors in choosing a nest site for Kestrels.
