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The red kite has a distinctive gliding, circling flight. Its deeply forked tail also makes it easily recognizable. The red kite is on e of the most graceful of all birds of prey. Its soars on the wind with its long, angled wings, while its forked tail constantly stabilizes its flight. It has a varied diet that includes small mammals and birds, fish, and carrion.
Habits: The red kite is similar in size to ta buzzard but is more slender.; Its plumage is mainly chestnut, and it can be identified in flight by its narrow, w-shaped wings and long, deeply forked tail. Its white head is marked with dark streaks, and its wings have white areas near the tips of the under wings. The male and female red kites look very similar to one another.
Red kites do not generally migrate, though some young birds may wander quite far from their home range soon after they have fledged (grown feathers). During a typical day a red kite may wander six miles or more from its roots site to hunt and scavenge. In winter red kites gather in small groups at food sites and at roosts. Most of the year they are solitary, although in breeding season they roost in paris.
Breeding Before mating in late March or April, red kite pairs fly together over the nest site, which is usually found on the out skirts of a forest. Some times pairs of kites grasp one another's talons and remain locked together until separating just above the treetops.
Both mates build the nest, which is located high in a tree. They construct the nest of twigs and man made materials, adding a soft lining of sheep's wool. The female incubates the eggs, although the male may help temporarily. The chicks are creamy white and pale brown and hatch at intervals. They make their first flights at 48 days old.
Food & Hunting: The red kite's habitat has diminished and , as a consequence, it no longer relies solely on scavenging in garbage dumps for food. It has adapted its diet to include small mammals such as rabbits and rodents, as well as invertebrates, reptiles, and fish. It also kills large birds and eases carrion a (flesh of dead animals).
The red kite's preference for carrion may be because its small, weak talons, are unsuitable for subduing large struggling animals. But its talons are efficient for catching smaller prey The red kit hovers effortlessly in the air for hours while it seeks out prey. It generally glides at a height of less than 65 feet. Once it spots live prey, it dives down and snatches the animal with its outstretched talons..
Red Kite & Man:
The red kite was a common throughout much of Europe before 1800. It flourished in both cites and the countryside by scavenging on refuse. The species has become extinct in parts of its range at the end of the 1800's because of over hunting by gamekeepers, trophy hunters, and egg collectors. However, the red kite is now steadily increasing in numbers as a result of conservationist activities.
Key Facts: Sizes, Weight, breeding, lifestyle,
related Species
Length: Male, 24-26 in. Females larger
than males.
Wingspan: 5 - 6 ft
Weight: Male, 28 to 42 oz. Female, 35
go 56 oz.
Breeding:
Sexual Maturity: 2 to 3 years.
Breeding Season: April to July
Fledging period: 45 to 50 days
Incubation: About 28 to 30 days.
No of Eggs: 1 to 5 (usually 3)
Lifestyle:
Habit: Pairs of life.
Diet: Includes small mammals and birds,
carrion, and fish.
Life Span: Typically 4 top 5 years, but
may live to 26 years in the wild and up to 38 in captivity.
Related Species: There are four of North
American Kite.
Distribution: Scattered thinly over Europe,
parts of North Africa, Turkey, and the Caucasus; much reduced or exterminated
in parts of northern and western Europe where it was once common.
Conservation: Despite preservations
efforts by conservationist, the red kite remains endangered.
Features of the Red Kite:
Primary (wing tip) feathers: Long and spreading
for twine control when hovering or gliding.
Wings: Long, slender, and angled back
from the midpoint. The front edges are a rich chestnut brown with
white flashes toward the primary (wing tip) feathers.
Talons: Small but needle-sharp.
Tail: Long and deeply forked.
Helps the kite maintain balance and control its direction.
Eggs: White with reddish brown speckles.
The clutch is usually two or three eggs but can contain just one or as
many as five.
Did you know:
An old name for the kite glad or glede, refers
to its graceful, gliding flight.
The red kite sometimes steals food from other
birds, including herons,, cows, and even other birds of prey such as buzzards,
goshawks, and peregrine falcons. IT chases them in flight.
It chases them in flight until they eventually give in and drop their food
or prey.
During the English renaissance the red kite was
protected by Londoners because it fed on the refuse that accumulated in
the streets. In his play, The winter's Tale, Shakespeare refers to
the birds usually practice of using clothes snatches from the line as a
nest building material: "When the kite builds, look to your lessor
linen."
The last time a red kite was seen in London was
in 1859.
Characteristics
The red kites remarkable ability to soar for
several hours at a time was the reason behind the naming of the toy
kite, whose maneuvers resemble the movements of the red kite in flight.
The species is sometimes seen in areas is sometimes
seen in areas populated by man where it often nests near a building.
The kite often makes use of the abandoned nests of other birds of prey
as well.
Like many birds of prey, the red kite performs
a mating display. While airborne, the male ad female entwine
their talons and free fall in spirals, separating and swooping skyward
again just before they would hit the treetops.
The red kite is not very vocal, Its call
resembles that of the buzzard.
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