![]() ![]() Twigs are also seized and snapped off with the feet by diving from a height. Green twigs are snipped off with the bill while the bird is perched. Old nests are often used, either the one of the previous year or an old crow’s nest, and the amount of refurbishment done is minimal. Mating takes place without display or calling, and such nest-building as they do begins about a week after arrival. There is little or no courtship display, although a pair sometimes fly about ‘chippering’ at each other. The body plumage is like that of the adult, but the under-wing coverts are white-barred the inner webs of the inner primaries marked with white, and there is some whitish barring on the lower abdomen and thighs.Īlthough they migrate in flocks, the kites appear to have formed pairs by the time they arrive in the breeding grounds. In immature plumage the juvenile wing and tail quills are retained. The juvenile plumage is not kept for very long it is usually moulted before the autumn migration. The eyes not as red as those of the adult. ![]() Below it is white, tinged with buff and streaked with brown. The throat is white with a few inconspicuous black shaft streaks. The wing and tail feathers are tipped with white, and there are two ventral white tail bands. Its back is black, with narrow rufous edges and white spotting. The juvenile kite is white streaked with black on the crown and the sides of its head. The adult female is similar but the head and shoulders are darker, and the female is appreciably larger than the male. The eyes are deep red the beak, cere, and inside the mouth deep black the legs reddish orange. The under parts are pale grey, but not as pale as the head. The lores and a narrow area around eyes are black. The tail and primaries are black, the inner primaries with pale rufous area and spots. ![]() The mantle is dark grey, becoming black on the bend of the wing the upper back blending with paler hind-neck. The Mississippi kites will be migrating to the tropics soon, and the young will need to fly with their families to find their way to their winter home.The adult male Mississippi Kite has a pale grey head, the pale grey extending to the back of its neck and its secondary flight feathers, the secondaries being tipped with white. If there is no injury, it is very important to leave the kite where it is so that the parents can continue to bring food. If the kite has an obvious injury, a licensed wildlife rehabilitator can be contacted to take the bird for treatment. If it is in a street and can be caught safely, carefully move the bird to a nearby yard or alley.ĭon’t try to help a young kite learn to fly by throwing it in the air – this could injure the bird. Try to keep dogs and cats away to avoid injuring the bird. If you find a young kite, the best thing to do is to leave it where you find it. There have been many reports of these birds being found by concerned citizens who want to help them. It can take several days for a juvenile kite to learn how to fly. They leave their nests, and often hop around on the ground flapping their wings in an effort to get airborne. Residents in Edmond also have been finding young kites.Īs the summer comes to a close, the young kites that were born this season are learning to fly. These small raptors often nest in western and central Oklahoma towns and the refuge has been getting numerous reports of people finding the fledling birds in places such as Clinton and Weatherford. Kites can be very protective of their nests, and many people have experienced their well-known dive-bombing when they get too close to a nest. The Washita National Wildlife Refuge wants to pass on information about Mississippi kites, gray hawks that are slightly smaller than a crow. ![]()
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