MISSISSIPPI KITE Nesting in Southside VA - Confirmed!
Report dated Saturday, July 16, 2005
Over the last 5-6 weeks I have made several trips down to Southside VA to
monitor the pair of MISSISSIPPI KITE with hopes of locating a nest and/or
young. I have seen crows chased, one of which was whacked by the adult male
kite; I have been dive-bombed several times by the same adult male kite,
luckily managing not to get whacked; I have had close encounters with a few
of the numerous snakes slithering around, and have somehow come away with
only one tick and no attacks from the several species of biting flies.
(Deet works wonders!)
I've put in well over 40 hours and quite a few of the locals that travel
along the rural country road have begun to inquire why someone would be out
in the middle of nowhere, especially today when the humidity was so thick
you could slice it with a knife. Part of the enjoyment during these birding
adventures is meeting the local folks and today quite a few of them,
including a fellow riding his tractor, stopped to chat and take a look at
the kites. A few addresses were given out with promises to send them
pictures of the kites.
I arrived by 7:45 a.m. and the adult female was perched on the open snag
stretching and preening. She then took a dive down into the trees and I did
not see her fly back out. The adult male then flew in, landing on the same
open snag. Shortly after 8 a.m. Jane Beavers and Bill Keith from Virginia
Beach arrived in time to see the adult male.
For the next 20 or so minutes we watched both the adult kites. One would
fly off and the other fly in to perch on the dead snap providing wonderful
views in the morning sun with bright blue background. Several times the
birds would fly off the perch and dive-bomb down into be trees below, the
same behavior observed last weekend. We would never see them flying up and
assumed the nest was down in there somewhere. What was puzzling is we would
see them catch insects and then fly back across the road behind us
disappearing over top of the trees. Not as vocal as last week, the female
seemed a bit more vocal with the phoebe-like two-note call and the adult
male would sometimes respond.
At 8:35 a.m. EDST the adult male flew to the snag with a rather large cicada
and proceeded to remove its wings. Instead of consuming it, he swooped down
and flew across the road where we lost it over top of the trees in back of
us. Where in the heck was he flying to? Several more times we observed the
adult carrying food and disappearing over top of tree on opposite side of
the road. By sheer determination and a whole lot of luck, I managed to
follow one of them as it flew low over the treetops. I moved further down
the road and saw a large bird fly into a tree set back approximately 60 feet
from the road. I knew it had to be one of the adult kites. Putting my
binoculars up I immediately saw a juvenile bird with the adult in a nest!
At long last, the first nesting record for MISSISSIPPI KITE in Southside
Virginia was well documented today. There is one juvenile that seems to
have most of its feathers; the head is still white fuzz.
The nest, consisting of small, thin branches, is well concealed in the very
upper portion along the center trunk of a tall gum tree that sways in the
slightest breeze. The nest appears deep as the juvenile would disappear
down inside. There is only one very narrow observation platform from the
roadway to see this nest explaining difficulty in locating. The adult birds
and juvenile are not the text book MIKI family. There is very little
vocalization and then it's only between the adult kites. The juvenile made
no sound today, even when adults flew in with food. Feeding was NOT every 5
to 10 minutes. There were long periods when neither adult bird was
observed. Instead of feeding the insect directly to the juvenile, the
adults would drop an insect down inside the nest and then fly off. The
juvenile would sometimes feed right away; sometimes it was observed eating
long after the parents had left. The juvenile moved around the nest,
occasionally standing on edge. A few times it would stretch and extend the
wings. Judging by size and feathers, fledging may occur within the week.
Below is link to few pictures of the nest with juvenile. Morning sun behind
the nest made it very difficult to photograph but images are sufficient to
document the nesting.
Also of note, another adult MIKI was observed flying low across Low Ground
Road (Rat. 730) near the railroad tracks just off Rt. 301 in Emporia. This
is the same area I first spotted an adult MIKI back in May, I believe. Just
as you turn onto Low Ground Road and cross the tracks, trees border an open
area of widely spaced homes on the right. The kite flew out of a tree and
across the road, circling over the large lawns. The bird was so low flying
across Low Ground Road it was almost eye level as I sat in the drivers seat
of the van.
LINK TO NESTING MIKI:
http://www.birdsofvirginia.com/image_links/MississippiKite-12_link.htm
LINK TO NESTING WHITE-EYED VIREO:
http://www.birdsofvirginia.com/image_links/White-eyedVireo2_link.htm
Brenda Tekin
Charlottesville, VA
brenda@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
"Leave behind what you find; if you must take something, take pictures."
Photo journal including Birds of Virginia: www.birdsofvirginia.com
<http://www.birdsofvirginia.com>
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