Nesting takes place high up in the trees but the nests are built in an easily-accessed location for the birds. They take to the skies around March to perform their courtship ‘dance’ and at this time they will also begin to build their nests. They’re generally ready to breed from within their second or third year. Red kites normally mate for life though sometimes an unsuccessful breeding season may prompt them to find a new mate. They mostly eat carrion and supplement it with worms. Red kites are often opportunistic when hunting and are known to take small mammals and other creatures of similar size on occasion. Their courtship display is enjoyable to watch as they twist and turn in the sky sometimes flying towards each other to pass food or or pull away at the last second. Males can normally be seen moving their tails more than females do and the tail is likely to be more deeply forked. They display the same colouration but the females are often larger than males. The easiest way to tell males and females apart is when you see them together. For good close views visit feeding stations (see useful links below). Red kites are quite common now in a lot of the UK as a result of successful reintroduction. Adults appear red in sunlight but juveniles exhibit less prominent colours and almost look washed-out in comparison.Ī red kite’s call usually contains one long whistle followed by around 4 sets of shorter whistles that fall to a lower note during the call. They tend to twist and turn their tail in flight in order to maintain control. Learn about the turbulent history and exciting future of the Red Kite in the second of our two-part blog.The most notable feature on a red kite is its forked tail. The collective name for a group of Red Kites is a ‘wake’, a ‘roost’, a ‘husk’, a ‘soar’ or a ‘kettle’!.Red Kites weigh between 1.5 - 2.5 lbs.
William Shakespeare makes reference to Kites way back in 1611, in his play The Winter’s Tale.When chicks are young, their mother can signal them to play dead if there are predators nearby.Adult Kites begin breading at two years old and pairs bond for life. Many juvenile Red Kites travel as far as Spain or Portugal in the autumn, but then settle the following spring in the area they were born. It takes about a month for fledglings to become fully independent. After that, both parents feed them until they’re ready to fledge, around 50 days after hatching. Each chick hatches after 28-30 days and the male typically brings in the food until they develop feathers. Kites have two or three eggs, laying one every three days. Just before the eggs are laid, the nest is decorated with found objects like rags or plastic bags. The male brings the female twigs and mud with which to construct the nest, and the inside is lined with grass and wool. Nest sites are built around 12-20m above the ground, sitting in the fork or limb of a tree. Some Kites learn to follow tractors to take advantage of any victims of the equipment.īreeding: Red Kites have one brood per year, in April.
When hunting, they will dive from the air or from a high perch onto their prey. Red Kites are diurnal (day-time) ground-feeding raptors but their talons are not very strong and their beaks are not very sharp, so they rely mostly on scavenging. They nest in tall trees so particularly like the mature trees in woodland areas.ĭiet: Mostly carrion and small mammals such as voles, mice and rabbits. Habitat: Fresh-water marshland, farmland, woodland or mountains. It tilts this large tail rather like a rudder, making it very swift and agile. In flight, the most defining feature of the Red Kite is its long tail, which is a large V-shape giving the bird a recognisable silhouette against other birds of prey. On the underside of each black wing is a strip of grey feathers which get lighter towards the tip. We decided to get to know our red-feathered namesake a little better in a two-part blog.Īppearance: Rusty red-brown and black with a grey head. On the brink of extinction in the UK at the turn of the twentieth century, and with the longest continuous conservation effort in the world, the Red Kite has a complex history and exciting future.
0 kommentar(er)
