Letter-winged Kites
Birds of Prey
Wild Bird Feeders ... Wild Bird Food / Seed ... Binoculars ... Humming Bird Feeders / Feed ... Bird Houses / Bird Nests ... Woodworking Instructions to Build Bird Houses ... Recommended Books
The Letter-winged Kite (Elanus scriptus) is a small, rare and irruptive Australian raptor with a core range in central Australia. It is similar in appearance to the Black-shouldered Kite except for a very distinctive black underwing pattern of a shallow ‘M’ shape, seen when in flight. It is largely nocturnal, roosting during the day in well-foliaged trees.
The usual habitat of the Letter-winged Kite is semi-arid open, shrubby or grassy country. Its principal prey is the Long-haired Rat, Rattus villosissimus. When population numbers of this rodent build up, following good rainfall, the Kites are able to breed continuously and colonially so that their numbers increase in parallel. When the rodent populations decline, the now superabundant Kites may disperse and appear in coastal areas far from their normal range in which, though they may occasionally breed, they do not persist and eventually disappear.
Copyright: Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from Wikipedia.org
If you would like to add to or correct any of the above information, or would like to share with web visitors your own experiences, please e-mail the webmaster.
Photo contributions are welcome!
