Mississippi Kite

Ictinia mississippiensisOrder: FALCONIFORMES Family: Kites, Eagles and Hawks (Accipitridae)

Codes: Common Name: MIKI Scientific Name: ICTMIS ITIS Taxonomic No.: 554268

Related Birds

Northern Harrier
White-tailed Kite
Osprey
Swallow-tailed Kite
Snail Kite

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Overview

Mississippi Kite: Small kite, dark gray upperparts, pale gray underparts and head. Eyes are red. Upperwings are dark gray with pale gray patches. Tail is long and black. Feeds on large flying insects. Bouyant flight with steady wing beats, alternates several wing strokes with short to long glides.

Range and Habitat

Mississippi Kite: Nests locally in the U.S. from Kansas, Iowa, Tennessee and South Carolina south to north-western Florida, and the Gulf coast to eastern Texas. Some occasionally winter in Florida. Prefers open country that supports flying insects; also found in forests.

Topo Map: Hawk-like Body

Listen to Call

Voice Text

"phee-phew"

Interesting Facts

The Mississippi Kite is similar in size to the Peregrine Falcon; however the falcon can be 3 times heavier.

It has also been called Mosquito Hawk, Blue Snake-hawk, Hovering Kite, and Locust-eater.

A group of kites has many collective nouns, including a "brood", "kettle", "roost", "stooping", and "string" of kites.

Bird Term Glossary

Author

Gary Owen Dick

Artist

Yury Lisyak

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Bird Call Credits: The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Martyn Stewart, http://www.naturesound.org, Redmond, Washington USA. The reuse or copying of bird calls in this database is strictly forbidden.

Mississippi Kite

● Song: "phee-phew"

● Foraging & Feeding: Mississippi Kite: Feeds extensively on large insects including grasshoppers, cicadas, beetles, and dragonflies; also takes lizards, frogs, and fish; catches insects on the wing.

● Breeding & nesting: Mississippi Kite: One to three lightly spotted, white to pale blue eggs are laid in a minimally refurbished abandoned crow's or other nest. Eggs are incubated by both parents for about 30 days.

● Similar species: Mississippi Kite: White-tailed Kite has a paler tail, black shoulder patches, and a black "thumb" mark underwing. Northern Harrier has dark secondary feathers, white rump patch, and a facial disk.

Flight Pattern

Buoyant flight with steady wingbeats., Sometimes alternates several wing strokes with short to long glides.

● Range & Habitat: Mississippi Kite: Nests locally in the U.S. from Kansas, Iowa, Tennessee and South Carolina south to north-western Florida, and the Gulf coast to eastern Texas. Some occasionally winter in Florida. Prefers open country that supports flying insects; also found in forests.

^BreedingMonogamous, Colonial

^PopulationCommon to fairly common

^MigrationMigratory

^Weight12.6 Ounces

Hawk-like Body

Underparts

Belly, undertail coverts, chest, flanks, and foreneck.

Upperparts

Back, rump, hindneck, wings, and crown.

4 and 6 letter alpha codes

The four letter common name alpha code is is derived from the first two letters of the common first name and the first two letters of common last name. The six letter species name alpha code is derived from the first three letters of the scientific name (genus) and the first three letters of the scientific name (species). See (1) below for the rules used to create the codes..

Four-letter (for English common names) and six-letter (for scientific names) species alpha codes were developed by Pyle and DeSante (2003, North American Bird-Bander 28:64-79) to reflect A.O.U. taxonomy and nomenclature (A.O.U. 1998) as modified by Supplements 42 (Auk 117:847-858, 2000) and 43 (Auk 119:897-906, 2002). The list has been updated by Pyle and DeSante to reflect changes reported by the A.O.U from 2003 through 2006.

Field Guide to Birds of North America