Mississippi Kite: Locust Eater

_{This YouTube video was produced by the American Bird Conservancy.}

With pearlescent gray feathers and a sleek silhouette, the Mississippi Kite (Ictinia mississippiensis) glides gracefully through the skies on wingbeats that manage to look effortless. While this medium-sized raptor with long, pointed wings and a squared-off tail may resemble a Peregrine Falcon in flight, the Mississippi Kite’s bouyant and easy flight can quickly distinguish it from the rapid, businesslike flight of the falcon. Its aerial acrobatics have earned the kite nicknames like “Hovering Kite.”

A long-distance migratory species, the Mississippi Kite breeds throughout the southern and central United States, making use of wooded areas in a range of settings — in large, low-lying forest tracts, windbreaks (stands of wind-resistant trees and shrubs) in prairies, and even in urban settings. Their habitat use and even their social behaviors vary throughout their range, with kites in the west being more likely to nest in colonies than their counterparts in the east.

Also known as: Blue Hawk, Blue Snake-hawk, Mosquito Hawk, Hovering Kite

Learn more about the Mississippi Kite at https://abcbirds.org/birds/mississippi-kite/