If you live in the range of this graceful raptor, keep your eyes toward the sky and you may catch a glimpse of these hunters on the wing.Ĭheck out my Brazoria Bird Collection for more local bird photos. I hope to update this post if I have some success. I’ll keep trying to improve on my image quality. When they do come to rest, they tend to choose very tall trees. In addition the lighting hasn’t been ideal. Good images of the Texas Mississippi Kites have been difficult to capture because they seem to be on the move most of the time. I have seen quite a few birds this week and have some photos to share here. If you follow these links, then you will be able to view images of the other raptors I have seen locally. It has a completely black tail, deep red eyes, and yellow to red legs. Migrants such as Swallow tailed Kite, and Broad winged Hawk are also regularly seen. Birds seen include Eastern and Western kingbirds, Lark and Grasshopper sparrows, Turkey Vultures, Eastern and Western meadowlarks, Mississippi Kites. The Mississippi kite is a beautiful, falcon-like bird whose body is an overall gray color and whose head is a lighter ashy gray. Other raptors in include Red Shouldered Hawk, Cooper’s Hawk, and Sharp-shinned Hawk. During the course of a year many raptors have used this area as their nesting or hunting ground. The habitat is quite good thus attracting many other species of birds. We have large tracts of 40 year old pines resulting in a prime area to attract the kites. My neighborhood is close to a sizeable bayou. Kites are also found in suburban settings near parks or stands of trees. Texas Mississippi Kites from the eastern part of the state tend to nest in old growth or wetland forest areas. Adult kites are approximately 14 inches long and have a wingspan of about 3 feet. Adults are slate grey in color with the males being a lighter grey than the females. Large dragonflies seem to be a favorite food. The Mississippi Kite (Ictinia mississippienisJ is a diurnal bird of prey belonging to the family Accipitridae. The kite is very acrobatic and graceful and take their prey in flight. The Mississippi Kites soar high above or swoop at treetop level looking for prey. Texas Mississippi Kites are small, slender raptors which feed mostly on insects. On the Wing From Cornell Lab of Ornithology I saw migrants in May, but now am seeing many Texas Mississippi Kites almost every day. Many spring migrants come through Texas each year, however, this year has brought a fair amount of breeding birds to the Upper Coast. They are breeders along the Upper Gulf Coast and the Texas Panhandle. Texas Mississippi Kites are migrants over the eastern half of the state.
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