The Greater Kestrel or White-eyed Kestrel (Falco rupicoloides) is a bird of prey belonging to the falcon family Falconidae.
It is one of the largest kestrels and is found in open country in southern and eastern Africa.
It occurs in open, arid areas where it inhabits grassland, savannas and semi-desert.
It is often associated with acacias.
It prefers areas where the ground cover is lower than 50 cm.
It is found from sea-level up to 2 150 metres, particularly between 800 and 1800 metres.
It is fairly common and widespread in the southern parts of its range but is scarce and patchily distributed further north.
The form F. r. rupicoloides breeds in Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, parts of Angola and Zambia and in much of South Africa apart from the wetter regions
of the south and east. F. r. arthuri is found in Kenya and northern
Tanzania while F. r. fieldi occurs in Ethiopia, Eritrea, northern Somalia and probably northern Kenya.
The total range covers about 3.5 million km2.
The population is stable and is likely to be in the order of 100 000 to 200 000 pairs.
Most birds are sedentary but some are nomadic or dispersive.
