#milvinae

[dendroica]

A snail kite carries an apple snail over Lake Kissimmee in Florida. The loss of wetlands has caused numbers of the bird to drop to about 400 breeding pairs

Photograph: Robert F Bukaty/AP

(via The week in wildlife – in pictures | Environment | The Guardian)

[that-crazy-scorpio-man]

A pair of Mississippi kites that... oh, my.  Seem to be doing the horizontal hokey-pokey.  Avert your eyes!!!

[animalids]

European black kite (Milvus migrans migrans)

Photo by Ronen Barany

[that-crazy-scorpio-man]

Always love the grace that kites have while they’re flying.  Really love hearing them call in the summer skies.

[alonglistofbirds]

[1632/10977] Brahminy kite - Haliastur indus

Order: Accipitriformes Family: Accipitridae Subfamily: Milvinae

Photo credit: Vivek Saggar via Macaulay Library

[alonglistofbirds]

[838/10,977] Black Kite - Milvus migrans

Order: Accipitriformes Family: Accipitridae Subfamily: Milvinae

Photo credit: Christoph Moning via Macaulay Library

[dendroica]

Bird of the Week: Snail Kite

The Snail Kite has one of the most specialized tools among raptors: a long, deeply curved beak designed to pull snails—the birds' main food—out of their shells. This specialized diet restricts the Snail Kite to wetlands, so if that habitat is destroyed, the bird declines.

When hunting, Snail Kites fly low over marshlands, plunging down to snatch snails from just under the water or from vegetation. They then return to a favorite perch to feed. Although common in Latin America, the species is a federal and state endangered species in the United States.

Snail Kites are gregarious and may congregate in flocks at roost sites (as this recording from Brazil demonstrates) or while foraging for food. The birds also nest in colonies in low trees and bushes, usually over water. This species is markedly dimorphic: males are a dark blue-gray with striking red legs and females are streaked brown and white, with a white eyebrow line.

The U.S. population of Snail Kites dropped precipitously from 3,000 in the late 1990s to approximately 700 today. Water management in the Everglades and in the central and south Florida lakes is the most important human-controlled factor affecting the survival and recovery of the species in the U.S.

In addition, the small Florida population is threatened by pesticides and nutrient run-off. Invasive plants such as melaleuca make it difficult for the kites to forage.

(via American Bird Conservancy)