Merlin
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Merlin

Falco columbarius

Silhouette: Andy Wilson · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability ~20% · Possible
at Denali National Park

In 3 days ~40% in a week ~70%

224 Verified sightings at Denali National Park From 2019 to 2026
7,604 In all 82 parks
August Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Merlin

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. They are swift fliers and skilled hunters, which specialize in preying on small birds in the size range of sparrows to doves and medium-sized shorebirds. In recent decades, merlin populations in North America have been significantly increasing, with some merlins becoming so well adapted to city life that they forgo migration; in Europe, populations increased up to about 2000, but have been steady subsequently. The merlin has for centuries been well regarded as a falconry bird.

The scientific classification of the merlin (Falco columbarius) represents a crucial bridge between early colonial natural history and the birth of modern taxonomy. In the early 18th century, English naturalist Mark Catesby traveled through the American colonies and documented the bird under the colloquial name "pigeon... Wikipedia →

Sounds

Call0:34

United States · 2024

© Valerie Heemstra · XC906167 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Begging call0:05

Russian Federation · 2023

© Mikhail Velikanov · XC794520 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Alarm call0:38

Sweden · 2022

© Lars Edenius · XC731075 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Riding Mountain National Park 🇨🇦 Canada
~20%
2 Denali National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~20%
3 Katmai National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
4 Isle Royale National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
5 Voyageurs National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
6 Jasper National Park 🇨🇦 Canada
~10%
7 Main Ridge Forest Reserve 🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago
~10%
8 Blue and John Crow Mountains National Park 🇯🇲 Jamaica
~10%
9 Wrangell-St. Elias National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
10 Cabo Pulmo National Park 🇲🇽 Mexico
~10%
11 Irazú Volcano National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
12 Point Pelee National Park 🇨🇦 Canada
~10%
13 Vatnajokull National Park 🇮🇸 Iceland
~10%
14 Ciénaga de Zapata 🇨🇺 Cuba
~10%
15 Banff National Park 🇨🇦 Canada
~10%
16 Bastimentos Island National Marine Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~10%
17 Caroni Swamp 🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago
~10%
18 Gros Morne National Park 🇨🇦 Canada
~10%
19 Cape Breton Highlands National Park 🇨🇦 Canada
~10%
20 Everglades National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
21 Los Haitises National Park 🇩🇴 Dominican Republic
~10%
22 Acadia National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
23 Padre Island National Seashore 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
24 Celestún Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
<5%
25 El Vizcaíno Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
<5%
26 Ría Lagartos Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
<5%
27 Arrecifes de Cozumel National Park 🇲🇽 Mexico
<5%
28 Great Bear Rainforest 🇨🇦 Canada
<5%
29 Pacific Rim National Park Reserve 🇨🇦 Canada
<5%
30 Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
31 Kluane National Park 🇨🇦 Canada
<5%
32 Wadden Sea National Park 🇩🇪 Germany
<5%
33 Elk Island National Park 🇨🇦 Canada
<5%
34 Channel Islands National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
35 Bahía de Loreto National Park 🇲🇽 Mexico
<5%
36 La Amistad International Park (Panama) 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
37 Guadalupe Mountains National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
38 Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
39 Shenandoah National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
40 Hortobágy National Park 🇭🇺 Hungary
<5%
41 Olympic National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
42 Death Valley National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
43 Tortuguero National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
44 Camargue 🇫🇷 France
<5%
45 Doñana National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
<5%
46 Los Quetzales National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
47 Big Cypress National Preserve 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
48 Glacier National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
49 Volcán Barú National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
50 Fertő-Hanság National Park 🇭🇺 Hungary
<5%
51 Kiskunság National Park 🇭🇺 Hungary
<5%
52 Grand Canyon National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
53 Cairngorms National Park 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
<5%
54 Palo Verde National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
55 Redwood National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
56 Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
57 Yellowstone National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
58 Zion National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
59 Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
<5%
60 Biebrza National Park 🇵🇱 Poland
<5%
61 Joshua Tree National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
62 Soberanía National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
63 Snowdonia National Park 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
<5%
64 Chagres National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
65 Monfragüe National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
<5%
66 Parque Natural Metropolitano 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
67 Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
68 Big Bend National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
69 Grand Teton National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
70 Chirripó National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
71 Great Smoky Mountains National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
72 Marino Ballena National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
73 Braulio Carrillo National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
74 Cahuita National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
75 Los Nevados National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
<5%
76 Tayrona National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
<5%
77 Poás Volcano National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
78 Carara National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
79 Pyrénées National Park 🇫🇷 France
<5%
80 Rocky Mountain National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
81 Saguaro National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
82 Arenal Volcano National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Calgary 🇨🇦 Canada
~20%
2 Montreal 🇨🇦 Canada
~10%
3 Edmonton 🇨🇦 Canada
~10%
4 Tijuana 🇲🇽 México
~10%
5 Anchorage 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
6 Toronto 🇨🇦 Canada
~10%
7 Santo Domingo 🇩🇴 Dominican Republic
~10%
8 Novosibirsk 🇷🇺 Russia
~10%
9 Salt Lake City 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
10 Miami 🇺🇸 United States
<5%

Zoos & Centres Where Found

# Zoo / Centre Country
1 Carolina Raptor Center 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
2 Cascades Raptor Center 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
3 Chouette à voir! 🇨🇦 Canada In captivity
4 Museum of Life and Science 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
5 Orphaned Wildlife Rehabilitation Society 🇨🇦 Canada In captivity

Closest Relatives at Denali National Park

Gyrfalcon
LC

Gyrfalcon

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Falco rusticolus

Daily sighting probability ~20% · Possible
Falco atricapillus

Falco atricapillus

Bird

Falco atricapillus

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
American Kestrel
LC

American Kestrel

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Falco sparverius

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
White-crowned Sparrow
LC

White-crowned Sparrow

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Zonotrichia leucophrys

Daily sighting probability ~80% · Very likely
Dark-eyed Junco
LC

Dark-eyed Junco

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Junco hyemalis

Daily sighting probability ~80% · Very likely
Yellow-rumped Warbler
LC

Yellow-rumped Warbler

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Setophaga coronata

Daily sighting probability ~70% · Very likely
Black-billed Magpie
LC

Black-billed Magpie

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Pica hudsonia

Daily sighting probability ~60% · Likely
Gray Jay
LC

Gray Jay

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Perisoreus canadensis

Daily sighting probability ~60% · Likely
Common Raven
LC

Common Raven

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Corvus corax

Daily sighting probability ~60% · Likely
Short-billed Gull

Short-billed Gull

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Larus brachyrhynchus

Daily sighting probability ~60% · Likely
American Robin
LC

American Robin

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Turdus migratorius

Daily sighting probability ~50% · Likely
Willow Grouse
LC

Willow Grouse

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Lagopus lagopus

Daily sighting probability ~50% · Likely

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Merlin in Denali National Park?

Possible

About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Merlin sighting in Denali National Park on a given day, based on 224 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 28th most-seen of the 113 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 40%, and over a week to about 70%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Merlin in Denali National Park?

August

In that month about 40% of wildlife watchers report a Merlin in Denali National Park on a given day, against under 5% in April, the lowest month. That is one of Denali National Park's wettest months, with about 190 mm of rain against 45 mm in April. November has too few records to rate.

What time of day is best to see a Merlin?

Between 8 and 11 am

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Merlin sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Denali National Park the best place to see a Merlin?

Among the best

Of the 82 parks where we can rate Merlin sightings, Denali National Park ranks 2nd at about 20%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Riding Mountain National Park (Canada, about 20%).

Where does the Merlin sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Merlin is recorded against all the birds logged in Denali National Park (224 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.

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