Letter-winged Kite
A species of Black-shouldered Kites Scientific name : Elanus scriptus Genus : Black-shouldered Kites
Letter-winged Kite, A species of Black-shouldered Kites
Botanical name: Elanus scriptus
Genus: Black-shouldered Kites
Content
Description General Info
Photo By Don Roberson 
Description
The adult letter-winged kite is about 35 cm (14 in) in length, with a wingspan between 84 and 100 cm (33 and 39 in). The female is slightly heavier, averaging 310 g (11 oz) compared to the male's average weight of 260 g (9.2 oz). The sexes have similar plumage. The adult male has pale grey upperparts, wings and nape with a white head and white underparts. It has large deep-red eyes, which are surrounded by a black eye patch. Its bill is black, with a dark grey-brown cere at its base. Its wings are marked with a black shoulder patch above and a striking black line underneath, which runs from the primary coverts to the body, and which resembles a letter 'M' or 'W' when flying. The central rectrices of the tail are pale grey, while the rest of the tail feathers are white. The legs and feet are a fleshy pinkish white or white. The feet have three toes facing forwards and one toe facing backwards. The female is similar but can be distinguished by a greyer crown, and its grey plumage is slightly darker all over. Moulting has been recorded from all months except May and August, and is probably related to breeding. The juvenile has a white lower forehead, face, chin and throat, with a brownish orange band across the forehead, neck and breast. It has a similar dark eye patch to the adult, and the eyes themselves are dark brown. The hindneck is grey-brown, and the upperpart feathers are grey-brown with orange tips. The rump and central tail rectrices are pale grey tipped with orange. The bill is black with a brownish grey cere. The letter-winged kite soars with v-shaped upcurved wings, the primaries slightly spread and the tail fanned, giving it a square appearance. When flying actively, it beats its wings more slowly and deeply than the black-shouldered kite (Elanus axillaris). The wing beats are interspersed with long glides on angled wings. It can also hover motionless facing into the wind and flapping its wings. The 'M' or 'W' on the underside of its wing and lack of black wing tips help distinguish it from the black-shouldered kite. Additionally, the latter species is diurnal, not nocturnal. At night, the letter-winged kite could be mistaken for the eastern barn owl (Tyto javanica) or eastern grass owl (T. longimembris), but these species have large heads; longer and trailing legs; blunted wings; and stockier bodies. The grey falcon (Falco hypoleucos) has somewhat similar colouration to the letter-winged kite but is bulkier and heavier overall, and lacks the black markings. 
Size
37 cm
Feeding Habits
Letter-winged Kite primarily preys on rodents, particularly the long-haired rat. Its hunting is characterized by flying and hovering before swooping on prey, mainly after sunset. Letter-winged Kite adapts to rodent populations, breeding when prey is abundant. It consumes an average of one rodent per day and also eats other small mammals and insects.
Habitat
Letter-winged Kite is typically found inhabiting sparsely timbered dry grasslands and plains within arid and semi-arid zones. The species is associated with open habitats, including coastal regions that exhibit similar environmental conditions. They nest in arid riparian woodlands and favor daytime roosting in tree varieties such as acacias and eucalypts, including the coolabah tree species.
Dite type
Carnivorous
General Info
Behavior
The letter-winged kite typically hunts at night, with daytime foraging taking place in areas of superabundant or scarce prey. By day, birds roost in leafy trees with plenty of cover, in colonies of up to 400 individuals, becoming active at dusk. Their social behaviour is poorly known on account of their nocturnal habits and shy nature, being difficult to approach when roosting.
Distribution Area
The usual habitat of the letter-winged kite is arid and semi-arid open, shrubby or grassy country, across the arid interior of the continent, particularly the southern Northern Territory, particularly the Barkly Tableland, and northeastern South Australia, and Queensland, where it is relatively common in western areas south of 20° south, and has been recorded as far afield as Townsville and Stradbroke Island. In South Australia it may reach the Eyre Peninsula and southeastern corner on occasion. The species is generally rare in New South Wales: it has been recorded in the vicinity of Broken Hill in the far west, and twice in Inverell in the north of the state—once found dead in a street in 1965 and once spotted alive a year later. It is rare in Western Australia. Its abundance or even presence in any given area is heavily dependent on availability of food; spells of significant rainfall inland lead to surges in rodent numbers, which in turn lead to irruptions of letter-winged kites. Nesting and raising multiple broods in succession, the kite population may increase ten-fold. Major irruptions have taken place in 1951–53, 1969–70, 1976–77, and 1993–95. Eventually dry conditions lead to a fall in rodent numbers and dispersal of birds, which often starve if they fail to find prey elsewhere.
Species Status
The letter-winged kite's fluctuations in abundance make its conservation status difficult to assess, though it is clearly much less common than the black-shouldered kite. It also rarely comes into contact with people across most of its range. It is rated as near threatened on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, as its population may number as low as 1,000 individuals between irruptions. It is unknown to what extent competition for food with the introduced red fox or feral cat, or if habitat degraded by overgrazing, have an impact on the letter-winged kite. It is not known whether the population has increased or decreased overall since European settlement.
Photo By Don Roberson 
Scientific Classification
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