Merlin
Merlin
Adult male (Taiga)
- Pigeon-sized falcon, muscular and lean
- Slaty-blue/gray cap and wings
- Thin white eyebrow with dark eye
- No distinct facial pattern
- Taiga subspecies most common in eastern U.S. and Canada
- © Christopher L. Wood, NY, Monroe County, March 2010
Merlin
Adult female (Taiga)
- Pigeon-sized falcon, muscular and lean
- Dark brown back and cap
- Dark eye and thin. pale eyebrow
- Dark streaks on breast
- © Duncan Murray, Calgary, Alberta, Canada, December 2008
Merlin
Adult male (Prairie)
- Light blue-gray crown
- Pale face with no distinct pattern
- Streaked breast
- Dark eye with pale eyebrow
- Prairie subspecies occurs in Great Plains states and southern Canada
- © Cameron Rognan, UT, Washington, February 2011
Merlin
Adult female (Prairie)
- Long, pointed wings and shorter tail
- Pale face with thin white eyebrow and dark eye
- Belly streaked with pale brown
- Under-wings boldly marked
- © Glenn Bartley, Alberta, Canada, May 2009
Merlin
Adult
- Slender, pointed wings
- Dark mottling on underside
- Dark charcoal or black back and crown
- © Tom Johnson, NY, Aurora, November 2009
Merlin
Juvenile
- Chubbier than adult
- Warm brown back and cap
- Buffy face
- Streaked breast
- © Pat Kavanagh, Taber, Alberta, Canada, July 2010
Merlin
Adult male (Taiga)
- Long wings sharply pointed in flight
- Blue/gray upper-parts
- Thick black bands on tail
- © Christopher L. Wood, NJ, Cape May, October 2010
Merlin
Adult (Taiga)
- Sharply pointed wings
- Dark streaking on breast and belly
- Black and white banded tail
- Bold "checkerboard" pattern on underwings
- © William Jobes, PA, Bucks County, September 2008
Merlin
Adult male (Taiga)
- Slaty blue cap and back
- Large, dark eye
- Thin pale eyebrow
- No distinct facial pattern
- © Jen St. Louis, Nelson, Campbellville, Ontario, Canada, October 2010
Similar Species
Adult female
- Smaller, more plump than Merlin
- Distinctive facial stripes
- Tan brown back with dark barring
- © Ned Harris, AZ, December 2008
Adult
- Much larger than Merlin
- Wings more rounded
- Bold mustache stripes on face
- Tail lacks dark bands
- © Joan Gellatly, Tucson, AZ, February 2010
Adult
- Longer tail than Merlin with chubbier body shape
- Red-orange barring on breast and belly
- Small, rounded head
- © Gerry Dewaghe, February 2009
Immature
- Wings more rounded than Merlin
- Thin stripes on underwings instead of "checkerboard" pattern
- Long tail
- © Lloyd Spitalnik, Cape May, NJ, October 2009
