Merlin

Last Friday morning on November 22nd, I glanced out the classroom window and noticed a different bird sitting atop a tree on our playground.  After looking through the binoculars, I realized it was a Merlin.  I gathered the students over to the windows and they shared the four pair of new binoculars to see their latest life bird. They were very excited!

The Merlin is a small, fast falcon which catches small birds as they are flying.  They are nicknamed the "pigeon hawk".   Merlins often live in towns and cities because they often eat sparrows and pigeons, which are in abundance there.  I have also seen one at our local lake. 

Now maybe you have learned a new bird!  Here is some more information about the Merlin.  You could also Google it to see if there is any video of this small falcon.

http://sdakotabirds.com/species/merlin_info.htm
Here is a photo that I took of a Merlin at our local lake.