Merlin

How to identify

Field marks

1. Male has blue-gray back
2. Male has pale yellowish-brown to orange belly with markings
3. Tail usually has three or four black bands and a narrow white tip
4. Yellow cere on the bill; legs and feet yellow

Male, female and young

Females and juveniles have a gray-brown to dark brown back and a white belly with brown spots; the female is slightly larger.

Where and when it's recorded

Busiest months: September–October · Most records: United States, Canada, United Kingdom

Merlin has been recorded at 2,551 of the 8,276 birding hotspots we track, in 117 countries and regions.

Records by month Northern Hemisphere

Where it's recorded most

1. Cape Island – CMPSP – Hawkwatch PlatformUnited States8,081 records
2. Whitefish PointUnited States6,358 records
3. Cape Island – Cape May Point SPUnited States5,792 records

Countries and regions with the most records

United StatesCanadaUnited KingdomMexicoSpainColombiaBelizePuerto Rico

eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.

About

The merlin (Falco columbarius) is a small species of falcon from the Northern Hemisphere, with numerous subspecies throughout North America and Eurasia. A bird of prey, the merlin breeds in the northern Holarctic; some migrate to subtropical and northern tropical regions in winter. Males typically have wingspans of 53–58 centimetres (21–23 in), with females being slightly larger.

Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia

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