Mississippi Kite

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.

The Mississippi Kite has a large range, estimated globally at 830,000 square kilometers. Native to the Americas, this bird prefers temperate forest and grassland ecosystems, though it has been known to live on arable land and in urban areas. The global population of this bird is estimated at 10,000 to 100,000 individuals and does not show signs of decline that would necessitate inclusion on the IUCN Red List. For this reason, the current evaluation status of the Mississippi Kite is Least Concern.

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.