NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Madagascan Kestrel
Falco newtoni (Gurney Sr, 1863)
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The Malagasy kestrel (Falco newtoni), also known as the Madagascar kestrel, Malagasy spotted kestrel, Newton's kestrel, Madagascar spotted kestrel, katiti (Creole) or hitsikitsika (Malagasy), is a small bird of prey of the genus Falco. It is named after British ornithologist Edward Newton. It occurs in two subspecies on Madagascar and at Aldabra. The race from Aldabra is also called Aldabra kestrel (Falco newtoni aldabranus). Its closest living relative is the Seychelles kestrel; they were at one time considered conspecific. Their common ancestors appear to have diverged very recently, probably less than 1 million years ago during the Early or Middle Pleistocene. The Mauritius kestrel is more distantly related (Groombridge et al. 2002).
Wikipedia contributors, Malagasy kestrel; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T07:14:28.172731+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Falco newtoni (Gurney Sr, 1863)
- Name authority
- (Gurney Sr, 1863)
- Common name
- Madagascan Kestrel
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Falconiformes
- Family
- Falconidae
- Genus
- Falco
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classAves
- orderFalconiformes
- familyFalconidae Leach, 1820
- subfamilyFalconinae Leach, 1820
- genusFalco Linnaeus, 1758
- speciesFalco newtoni (Gurney Sr, 1863)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Falco. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Amur FalconFalco amurensis Radde, 1863 | FalconidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Brown FalconFalco berigora Vigors & Horsfield, 1827 | FalconidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Lanner FalconFalco biarmicus Temminck, 1825 | FalconidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Australian FalconFalco cenchroides Vigors & Horsfield, 1827 | FalconidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Red-headed FalconFalco chicquera Daudin, 1800 | FalconidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| African HobbyFalco cuvierii A. Smith, 1830 | FalconidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Orange-breasted FalconFalco deiroleucus Temminck, 1825 | FalconidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Taita FalconFalco fasciinucha Reichenow & Neumann, 1895 | FalconidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Aplomado FalconFalco femoralis Temminck, 1822 | FalconidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Gray FalconFalco hypoleucos Gould, 1841 | FalconidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Laggar FalconFalco jugger J. E. Gray, 1834 | FalconidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Prairie FalconFalco mexicanus Schlegel, 1850 | FalconidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=175647 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:L23JQ. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.