Mississippi Kite

The Mississippi kite soars gracefully through the air, searching diligently for food below.

They are among the most common birds of prey in the southern parts of the United States. Entire groups of these birds can be seen roosting together in the summer. There are many fun facts to discover about this fascinating bird of prey.

3 Amazing Mississippi Kite Facts

• One of the most interesting fun facts is that the Mississippi kite has an unusual call that sounds a bit like a squeaky toy.
• The Mississippi kite gains weight in August to prepare for the annual migration.
• The Mississippi kite has incredible eyesight that can spot small flying prey from a long distance.

Where to Find the Mississippi Kite

The name of this bird is a bit of a misnomer. The Mississippi kite can be found roosting and hunting near hardwood forests, open prairies, and even urban and suburban neighborhoods throughout the entire central and southeastern United States, sometimes even appearing in locations as far north as New England. Its migratory route takes it all the way down to South America as well.

Mississippi Kite Nests

Mississippi kites will take up residence in elm, oak, mesquite, or eastern cottonwood trees, just high enough to prevent predators from easily accessing their roost. The nest is constructed out of twigs and green leaves.

Mississippi Kite Scientific Name

The scientific name of the Mississippi kite is Ictinia mississippiensis. Ictinia, derived from the Greek word for a kite, contains only one other species, the Plumbeous kite of Central and South America. Mississippiensis is a Latinized version of the state with which it’s commonly associated.

Mississippi Kite Size, Appearance, and Behavior

The Mississippi Kite is a slender raptor, measuring about a foot tall and weighing less than a pound. It can be identified by the subdued color pattern, including a white or light gray head and stomach, dark gray wings, and black wingtips and tail. Other prominent features include red eyes (surrounded by a circular pattern of gray feathers), a sharp gray-colored beak, and yellow talons. Males and females are fairly similar in appearance, but juveniles look very different; identification is a matter of finding the dark brown streaks along the chests and under wings, and a banded tail.

The Mississippi Kite is an excellent flyer. It spends a great deal of time in the air, gliding along updrafts, while sometimes executing incredible aerial maneuvers to catch fast-moving prey. Unlike some birds of prey, this is a highly social species that roost together in large flocks and does not keep an individual territory. Sometimes it can be heard making a high-pitched two-note whistle-like call.

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Migration Pattern and Timing

After the completion of the breeding season, the Mississippi kite does travel south toward its Central and South America range for the winter; most of them eventually settle in Brazil and Argentina. The migration proceeds in small groups of 20 to 30 birds at a time.

Mississippi Kite Diet

These Kites are carnivorous and opportunistic birds. It consumes almost any kind of meat it can find.

What does the Mississippi kite eat?

The diet of the kite mostly consists of insects. Grasshoppers, cicadas, beetles, moths, dragonflies are among its favorite food. It will also supplement this with frogs, snakes, turtles, bats, rodents, and smaller birds.

Mississippi Kite Predators, Threats, and Conservation Status

These kite faces very few natural threats in the wild, but some birds do fall victim to predators, human hunters, poisoning, collisions with vehicles, and other accidents. It is currently classified by the IUCN Red List as a species of least concern. The species as a whole is protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act in the United States.

What eats the Mississippi kite?

An adult kite has few consistent predators, but eggs and young hatchlings are sometimes preyed upon by raccoons, snakes, crows, owls, and other birds of prey. Groups of kites will emit a loud call and mob a predator that gets too close to the nests.

Mississippi Kite Reproduction, Young, and Molting

These kites form intimate pair bonds that generally last for life. Courtship may involve some form of aerial acrobatics but generally doesn’t continue once the bond is established. The breeding season occurs every year between May and July and produces one or two (rarely three) eggs. During the month-long incubation period and the subsequent brooding, the parents take turn protecting, feeding, and keeping the young warm.

By the five-week mark, the youngsters have already ventured out from the nest and begun to fly. However, they will continue to be fed by the parents until about eight weeks after hatching. They are considered to be sexually mature by around one or two years of age. The lifespan of the typical kite is about eight years, but the oldest known member of the species had a lifespan of 11 years.

Mississippi Kite Population

The estimated population size of these kites is around 300,000. The species was in a state of decline by the middle of the 20th century, but it has since staged a comeback and is now expanding its range throughout the United States.

1. Animal Diversity Web, Available here: https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Ictinia_mississippiensis/
2. Audubon, Available here: https://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/mississippi-kite
3. The Peregrine Fund , Available here: https://www.peregrinefund.org/explore-raptors-species/kites/mississippi-kite