Combining high-technology and old-fashioned field tracking, a UC Davis researcher is gathering data necessary for the protection of two small hawk species native to California's Central Valley. Andrea Erichsen, an avian science graduate student, scouts Yolo County for glimpses of kestrels and white-tailed kites. Recovered from near-extinction in the 1930s, kites are once again believed to be declining in the Sacramento Valley. The state is considering placing the bird on its species of special concern list. Using radio tracking methods to establish each bird's home range, Erichsen prepares computer-generated maps showing what types of land use are conducive to kite nesting. "Only 42 percent of their nests are successful in producing young, and most of the nests that fail do so because of competition for nest territories," says Erichsen. In addition to tracking kites, she has placed 43 kestrel nesting boxes and checks them regularly. She hopes to provide farmers and developers with information on how they can spare sufficient habitat to support the birds. Her research is partially funded by the Center for Ecological Health Research at UC Davis.