The fox kestrel (Falco alopex) is a bird of prey belonging to the falcon family Falconidae.

Juvenile fox kestrels have heavier streaking than the adults and clearer barring on the tail.

It breeds in the savanna region south of the Sahara from Mali eastwards as far as Ethiopia and north-west Kenya.

It occasionally wanders west to Senegal, the Gambia and Guinea and south to the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

It generally catches food on the ground but also hunts for flying insects escaping from grass fires.