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The
Black-winged Kite (
Elanus caeruleus) is a small
bird of preyBirds of prey are birds that hunt for food primarily on the wing, using their keen senses, especially vision. They are defined as any bird that kills its prey with its talons. Their talons and beaks tend to be relatively large, powerful and adapted for tearing and/or piercing flesh. In most cases,...
in the family
AccipitridaeThe Accipitridae is one of the two major families within the order Accipitriformes . Many well-known birds, such as hawks, eagles, kites, harriers and Old World vultures are included in this group...
which also includes many other diurnal
raptorBirds of prey are birds that hunt for food primarily on the wing, using their keen senses, especially vision. They are defined as any bird that kills its prey with its talons. Their talons and beaks tend to be relatively large, powerful and adapted for tearing and/or piercing flesh. In most cases,...
s such as
eagleEagles are large birds of prey which are members of the bird family Accipitridae, and belong to several genera which are not necessarily closely related to each other. Most of the more than 60 species occur in Eurasia and Africa...
s,
buzzardA buzzard is one of several large birds, but there are a number of meanings as detailed below.-Old World:In the Old World Buzzard can mean:* One of several medium-sized, wide-ranging raptors with a robust body and broad wings....
s, and
harrierA harrier is any of the several species of diurnal hawks forming the Circinae sub-family of the Accipitridae family of birds of prey. Harriers characteristically hunt by flying low over open ground, feeding on small mammals, reptiles or birds....
s.
This species was formerly referred to as the Black-shouldered Kite, but this name is now only used for the Australian species,
Elanus axillarisThe Black-shouldered Kite or Australian Black-shouldered Kite is a small raptor found in open habitat throughout Australia and should not be confused with the Black-winged Kite, which is also called Black-shouldered Kite...
, which at one time (along with the American
White-tailed KiteThe White-tailed Kite is an elanid kite found in western North America and parts of South America.Their coloration is gull-like, but their shape and flight falcon-like, with a rounded tail...
E. leucurus) was treated as a subspecies of
E.
Discussion
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The
Black-winged Kite (
Elanus caeruleus) is a small
bird of preyBirds of prey are birds that hunt for food primarily on the wing, using their keen senses, especially vision. They are defined as any bird that kills its prey with its talons. Their talons and beaks tend to be relatively large, powerful and adapted for tearing and/or piercing flesh. In most cases,...
in the family
AccipitridaeThe Accipitridae is one of the two major families within the order Accipitriformes . Many well-known birds, such as hawks, eagles, kites, harriers and Old World vultures are included in this group...
which also includes many other diurnal
raptorBirds of prey are birds that hunt for food primarily on the wing, using their keen senses, especially vision. They are defined as any bird that kills its prey with its talons. Their talons and beaks tend to be relatively large, powerful and adapted for tearing and/or piercing flesh. In most cases,...
s such as
eagleEagles are large birds of prey which are members of the bird family Accipitridae, and belong to several genera which are not necessarily closely related to each other. Most of the more than 60 species occur in Eurasia and Africa...
s,
buzzardA buzzard is one of several large birds, but there are a number of meanings as detailed below.-Old World:In the Old World Buzzard can mean:* One of several medium-sized, wide-ranging raptors with a robust body and broad wings....
s, and
harrierA harrier is any of the several species of diurnal hawks forming the Circinae sub-family of the Accipitridae family of birds of prey. Harriers characteristically hunt by flying low over open ground, feeding on small mammals, reptiles or birds....
s.
This species was formerly referred to as the Black-shouldered Kite, but this name is now only used for the Australian species,
Elanus axillarisThe Black-shouldered Kite or Australian Black-shouldered Kite is a small raptor found in open habitat throughout Australia and should not be confused with the Black-winged Kite, which is also called Black-shouldered Kite...
, which at one time (along with the American
White-tailed KiteThe White-tailed Kite is an elanid kite found in western North America and parts of South America.Their coloration is gull-like, but their shape and flight falcon-like, with a rounded tail...
E. leucurus) was treated as a subspecies of
E. caeruleus.
Habitat
It is a species primarily of open land and semi-deserts in sub-
SaharaThe Sahara , , "The Greatest Desert") is the world's largest hot desert. At over 9,000,000 square kilometres , it covers most of Northern Africa, making it almost as large as the United States or the continent of Europe. The desert stretches from the Red Sea, including parts of the Mediterranean...
n
AfricaAfrica is the world's second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area. With a billion people in 61 territories, it accounts for about 14.8% of the...
and tropical
AsiaAsia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.6% of the earth's total surface area and with approximately 4 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population.Asia is traditionally defined as part of the...
, but it has a foothold in
EuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian Sea, the Caucasus Mountains , and the Black Sea to the southeast...
in
SpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.
[The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though España , Estado español and Nación española are used interchangeably...]
and
PortugalPortugal , officially the Portuguese Republic , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of mainland Europe and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and south and by Spain to the north and east...
. It nests in trees.
It takes live prey such as small
mammalMammals are a class of vertebrate animals whose females are characterized by the possession of mammary glands while both males and females are characterized by sweat glands, hair, three middle ear bones used in hearing, and a neocortex region in the brain.Mammals are divided into three main...
s,
birdBirds are winged, bipedal, endothermic , vertebrate animals that lay eggs. There are around 10,000 living species, making them the most numerous tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Birds range in size from the Bee Hummingbird to the ...
s, and
insectInsects are arthropods, having a hard exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae. They are the most diverse group of animals on the planet and include more than a million species that are already described. Insects represent more than half of all...
s. The slow hunting flight is like a harrier, but it will hover like a Kestrel.
Identification
This bird is unmistakable. It has a white head with a black "mask", and white underparts except for black tips to its narrow
falcon-likeA falcon is any species of raptor in the genus Falco. The word comes from their Latin name falco, related to Latin falx because of the shape of these birds' wings.-Overview:...
wings. Upperparts are blue-grey except for black shoulder patches.
The tail is short and square, quite unlike the more familiar
Milvus kiteKites are raptors with long wings and weak legs which spend a great deal of time soaring. Most feed mostly on carrion but some take various amounts of live prey....
s.