A NORMAL KESTREL?

I have just returned from a holiday to Albufeira in Portugal. Each evening along the cliffs in The Old Town were a group, I presume a family, of Kestrels. The thing that struck me was how pale one of the birds appeared to be when hovering. The pic appears to show quite pale wings with quite a reddish-brown body. I assume this bird is a normal Kestrel but could its coloration be a Lesser Kestrel? Alan Herbert

QAlthough Lesser Kestrels can be seen in the Albufeira area, we’re afraid this is the more common Kestrel. We’d expect a Lesser Kestrel to have a much less streaky breast and underside, and those wings, despite looking pale, are just not ‘clean’ enough for the species. The adult bird also seems to show evidence of a dark moustachial stripe, which again is fairly conclusive that this is a Kestrel.

A