“Phee
Phew” is the call of the Mississippi Kite.
This
small kite is grey in color with distinct red eyes and a long black tail. Their diet consists of large flying
insects that are caught while the bird is on the
wing. For about the last 25 years the Mississippi Kite has been sighted in St. Louis during
summer months.
They will raise their young in
pockets of St. Louis city and county.
One of two young Mississippi Kites currently in our hospital's exercise mews
With this
being my third summer working at WBS’s rehabilitation hospital I have slowly
noticed trends where certain species breed in the surrounding St. Louis
area.
We recently received a 3
week old Mississippi Kite that had fallen from a
nest about 50 feet off the ground.
Luckily for the little one the land owner brought it to our wildlife
hospital. It was found after an
examination that the kite has no injuries. I got to thinking about the St. Louis area and the
relationship with the Mississippi kite.
After doing some homework I have discovered that Coniferous, or pine forest edges, grassland edges, and urban areas are
the preferred breeding habitat for this kite species.
This youngster was ready to take on the big bad photographer
Often
times this species is misidentified as the Peregrine Falcon--although the
Peregrine Falcon is over three times heavier. The global population of Mississippi Kites is estimated to be as large as 100,000 individuals
with no signs of decline.
Oftentimes multiple Mississippi kites will be seen flying and riding thermals,
or the warm air rising from the ground. The name for a group of kites has many
terms, including a “string”, “kettle”, and “brood” of kites.
In
mid-September the adults will start migrating to as far
south as Argentina and the juveniles are soon to follow. But, before you know
it they are back in the beginning of May.
This is the time of the year when we will most likely receive adult
Mississippi kites at the wildlife hospital.
In the case of the baby received over the weekend, hopefully with a
few weeks of exercise at the WBS wildlife hospital and plenty of food the kites
will be returned back to the wild before the migration begins.
Submitted
by Adam Triska, World Bird Sanctuary Naturalist/Trainer
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