Merlin Photos

Photography by Terry Sohl

My Favorite: Merlins are a bird I never expect to actually see when I go out, and when I do it's always a surprise, a bit of serendipity. They're not predictable in where they're found in general. In South Dakota, they're primarily found in winter, although a few may breed in the far western edge of the state. I've seen them in a wide variety of areas, including right close to home near Brandon, South Dakota. However, for some reason, there's one little spot about 5 miles southwest of Presho where most of the photos below are from, and it's definitely NOT the same bird. Four different birds from the Presho area are shown in the modest collection of photos below. It is a location where the land is managed for pheasant and grouse hunting, and there's typically a lot of sorghum and other grains left for those birds. Because of that, there are often flocks of European Starlings, and sometimes, Red-winged Blackbirds that are trying to overwinter. There also are often mixed flocks of Horned Larks, Snow Buntings, and Lapland Longspurs in that area. Put it all together, and it's smorgasbord of bird treats for a hungry Merlin.

I do have a few photos of Merlins with a fresh kill, but they're not the greatest light, or sharpest photos in the world. My favorite Merlin photo is of the bird below, of a beautiful female who let me watch her at close range for quite some time. Love the stare into the camera for this shot.

Merlin - Falco columbarius


Merlin 1	Merlin 2	Merlin 3	Merlin 4
November 11th, 2004	November 9th, 2008	November 11th, 2004	November 11th, 2004
Near Presho, South Dakota	Minnehaha County, South Dakota	Near Presho, South Dakota	Near Presho, South Dakota
Female / immature with freshly caught Lapland Longspur	Immature / female bird posing on a wooden fence post	Female / immature with freshly caught Lapland Longspur	Female / immature with freshly caught Lapland Longspur

Merlin 5	Merlin 6	Merlin 7	Merlin 8
January 7th, 2006	March 1st, 2008	March 1st, 2008	March 1st, 2008
Near Presho, South Dakota	Near Presho, South Dakota	Near Presho, South Dakota	Near Presho, South Dakota
Adult male Merlin of the "prairie" race	Female perched on a fence post in the early morning sun	Female perched on fence post, looking into the camera	Profile of a female perched on a fence post

Merlin 9	Merlin 10	Merlin 11	Merlin 12
March 1st, 2008	March 1st, 2008	December 19th, 2009	January 18th, 2015
Near Presho, South Dakota	Near Presho, South Dakota	Near Presho, South Dakota	Lyman County, South Dakota
Female perched on a fence post in the early morning sun	Female taking flight from a fence post	Female on fence post on a sunny winter day	Female with freshly caught European Starling, on "no hunting" sign

Merlin 13
August 29th, 2020
Minnehaha County, South Dakota
Immature, first-year bird posing on a wooden fence post