Make a list of all bird species you've see in Tennessee and you'll discover all that you've been missing. View the official list of the birds of Tennessee (and see the status of each species) at cq. Breeding is now restricted mainly to Florida and coastal wetland regions of other southeastern states. There is no record of a nest in Tennessee. Swallow-tailed kites formerly nested in southeastern states and up the Mississippi River Valley as far as Minnesota. Small vertebrate food items include snakes, tree frogs, lizards and baby birds. Besides insects, kites snatch small prey as they fly by tree branches in the canopy or fly low over marsh plants. Besides catching food in the air, they gather nest materials in flight and drink by skimming the surface of the water like swallows. Swallow-tailed kites spend more time in the air than other hawks. This definition suits an agile predatory bird that swoops and darts about chasing insect prey in mid-air. Before there were toy kites, the word kite was a verb meaning to press forward, drive on, harass, shoot out rapidly, move quickly. Further west, breeding in urban and suburban landscapes has become increasingly widespread since the 1960s. In eastern parts of the range, denser areas of unbroken forest are preferred by nesting pairs. However, a large bird hovering in mid-air can resemble a toy kite. The natural habitat of Mississippi kites includes woodlands, swamplands and open pastures within the Great Plains region. The word kite didn't originally refer to a toy that flies buoyantly on a string. Twisting as much as 90 degrees, the tail enables a soaring kite to make very precise maneuvers and capture the flying insects that make up a large part of its diet. Like a barn swallow's tail, the kite's forked tail helps steer the bird. Shaped like giant barn swallows, pointed-winged swallow-tailed kites open and close their long forked tails like a pair of scissors. Two kite species occur in Tennessee ? Mississippi kite (regular in West Tennessee) and swallow-tailed kite. For the technologically savvy, modern rare bird chases involve GPS coordinates, maps viewed on smart phones, and real time e-mail updates from people observing the bird at the exact moment they're reporting it. The truly dedicated jumped into their vehicles and cut to the chase on a quest to reach the exact location of the most recent sighting of this seldom-seen bird. The occurrence of a swallow-tailed kite in Tennessee is regarded as an accidental visit by a vagrant bird ? a very rare and unpredictable event. Dedicated birdwatchers (especially those working on additions to Tennessee and life bird lists) always make a special effort to find these unexpected arrivals.Ī rare swallow-tailed kite sent birders from across the state scrambling (or kiting) into Bledsoe County in the days following the bird's discovery July 20 near Pikeville. He was born and raised in historic downtown Junction City, KS. Our baby Mississippi Kite has left the nest. Late July and early August always seem to bring unusual birds kiting into East Tennessee. 250 subscribers Subscribe 18 Share 4.1K views 12 years ago You can watch in 1080p.
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