[2] The generic name is Late Latin falco 'falcon' (from falx falcis, 'sickle') and the specific epithet is derived from Ancient Greek kenkhris 'kestrel' and -oides 'resembling'.

[3] The common names Mosquito Hawk, Kestrel, Windhover, Hoverer are cited in the Australian Faunal Directory.

It seems to have evolved from ancestral common kestrels dispersing to the Australian region in the Middle Pleistocene — less than 1 million years ago — and adapting to local conditions.

[4] Plumage varies considerably in detail, and some birds can look very scruffy, but the slim build, small size and distinctive straight-winged hovering habit make identification easy.

[citation needed] A very common and easily seen raptor, the nankeen kestrel is found in Australia, New Guinea, and nearby islands, and is an irregular visitor to New Zealand.

Nankeen kestrels are adaptable and hunt in a number of different ways: of these, simply perching in an exposed position (such as on a dead tree or a telephone pole) and watching for prey is the most common, but it is their habit of hovering motionless over crop and grasslands that is most distinctive.