Mississippi kite birds pa7/18/2023 Groups of 10 – 50 individuals are often seen roosting in large stands of eucalyptus trees (Di Giacomo 2005). Also increasingly found in wooded suburbs. Habitatīreeding / Summer: Usually seen individually or in pairs, hunting in open areas (prairies, woodlands, savannahs and agricultural lands) or roosting on tall trees adjacent to open country. In 2004, at least 9,700 were reported during fall migration near Corpus Christi, Texas (Smith 2004). In 2006, a flock consisting of an estimated 10,000 individuals was reported on northward bound migration at Fuerte Esperanza, Argentina. They usually migrate in loose flocks, often in mixed flocks with other migrant raptor species, such as Swainson’s Hawks, Plumbeous Kites, Broad-winged Hawks and Turkey Vultures. March / April – May: Birds migrate north through coastal Mexico to their breeding territories in the United States.Įnd of August – September / October: Breeding birds travel south to their wintering ranges. Non-breeding birds also occur as far north as southern Texas. They migrate south to winter in central South America, specifically northern Argentina and southern Paraguay. In recent years, they have been regularly recorded as far north as the Great Lakes region and southern New England (New Hampshire). They nest in the northwestern third of Texas and north central Texas isolated nesting populations are found in eastern Texas. They breed in southern and central North America – from Arizona east to southeastern Colorado, southern Kansas, and southern Missouri south to Florida. Distribution / Habitat Summer / Breeding Range They have an average lifespan of 7 – 8 years. Mississippi Kites are protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918, which makes it illegal to harm, or take into possession, the adults, their eggs or their young, or to tamper with their nests (empty or occupied) without the proper permits. These graceful, long-winged, falcon-like birds have a plumage that is mostly grey with a paler head a black tail, yellow to red legs and red eyes. Notwithstanding their common and Latin names, these birds of prey are more common in the southern Great Plains than in the State of Mississippi. These long-distance migrants travel in flocks south to winter in South America. The Mississippi Kites ( Ictinia mississippiensis) are raptors that breed in scattered localities across the southern and central United States.
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