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ABOUT THIS SPECIES

SWALLOW-TAILED KITE – (Species Account Blog #90)

TAXONOMIC TREE:  

• ORDER: Accipitriformes,
• FAMILY: Accipitridae,
• BINOMIAL NAME: Elanoides forficatus

With its striking black and white plumage, deeply forked tail, and extraordinary aerial grace, the Swallow-tailed Kite is rarely misidentified as it courses low over the treetops in search of small vertebrates or twists and dives in pursuit of flying insects. Even at great distances, soaring Swallow-tailed Kites can be distinguished from Buteo hawks and vultures by their silhouette, slightly downcurved wings, and tendency to hang motionless while heading upwind. They rarely flap their wings but almost continuously rotate their tail, often to nearly 90 degrees, in order to hold a heading, turn abruptly, or trace tight circles while drifting across the sky. (from Birds of the World)

GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION

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PERSONAL OBSERVATION ANECDOTES

In Costa Rica we saw several groups of Swallow-tailed Kites flying overhead near Sarapiqui and then later near Arenal.

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PHOTO GALLERY

**Some of these Photo Gallery images (all taken by me) have been taken in other nearby countries.

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RECENT BLOG POSTS

View the five most recent Birds & Birding in Costa Rica series blog posts below.

• A Streak-headed Woodcreeper Feeds its Offspring Near the Arenal Observatory Lodge, Costa Rica
• PALE-BILLED WOODPECKER – Pura Vida Birds and Birding
• SMOKY-BROWN WOODPECKER – Pura Vida Birds and Birding
• HOFFMANN’S WOODPECKER – Pura Vida Birds and Birding
• BLACK-CHEEKED WOODPECKER – Pura Vida Birds and Birding