BLACK-WINGED KITE

The 'Black-winged Kite' (''Elanus caeruleus'') is a small bird of prey in the family Accipitridae which also includes many other diurnal raptors such as eagles, buzzards and harriers.
It is a species primarily of open land and semi-deserts in sub-Saharan Africa and tropical Asia, but it has a foothold in Europe in Spain. It nests in trees.
It takes live prey such as small mammals, birds and insects. The slow hunting flight is like a harrier, but it will hover like a Kestrel.
This bird is unmistakable. It has a white head with a black "mask", and white underparts except for black tips to its narrow falcon-like wings. Upperparts are blue-grey except for black shoulder patches.
The tail is short and square, quite unlike the more familiar ''Milvus'' kites.
This species was formerly referred to as the Black-shouldered Kite, but this name is now only used for the Australian species, ''Elanus axillaris'', which at one time (along with the American White-tailed Kite ''E. leucurus'') was treated as a subspecies of ''E. caeruleus''.

Contents

Gallery

See also

References

Gallery

See also

★ Black Kite

★ Red Kite

★ Black-shouldered Kite

★ White-tailed Kite

References

★ Database entry includes justification for why this species is of least concern