It's not everyday one gets to be with Mitchell Byrd when he sees a new bird for
the state. So it was quite a thrill to join him as we observed 3 very
different Mississippi Kites at the interface of Low Ground Road (Rt 730), the
Meherrin River, and Greensville and Southampton counties. One of the birds was
in full adult plumage. A second individual was clearly an immature in partial
wing and tail molt. A third bird was an adult also in wing molt. We watched
one of the kites for about 5 minutes as it perched at the tip of a snag above
the river. The heavy, overcast skies around 11:00 a.m. kept most of the large
odonates low, so the birds rarely flew much above tree top level. All 3 kites
were seen on the west side of the bridge, and only once, very briefly, was one
noted over the cultivated field there.
Mitchell Byrd and Bill Williams
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