In any plumage, Snail Kites differ from all other North American raptors in the extremely thin, curved, hooked tip to the bill, perfect for prying snails out of curved shells. Eyes of females and young vary from brownish red to brown, while the cere, facial skin, and feet are generally yellow. Adult males have red eyes, cere, bare facial skin, and feet. Moderately thick at the base but narrowing to a very thin, curved, hooked tip.Ĭolors of bare parts. White at base and narrowly at tip, with a very broad black subterminal band.īill shape. Adult males slate-gray adult females grayish brown juveniles warm brown to buff. A medium-sized raptor with broad, rounded wings and a short, broad tail. Since then, the population has been growing again in 2018, it was pegged at over 2,500. A sharp decline occurred after 1999, and by 2009, the estimate had fallen below 800. The kite may have numbered fewer than 100 in the early 1970s, but by 1997 the estimate was above 3,000. Numbers have risen and fallen, with breeding success or failure driven partly by changing water levels and snail populations. It’s very difficult to get an accurate count of Snail Kites, but direct census work since 1969 and extrapolated estimates since the late 1990s have given us rough ideas of population trends in Florida. In years of drought, Snail Kites may not breed at all. Their specialized prey, apple snails (genus Pomacea), are sensitive to changes in water levels, so the kites are nomadic within Florida, moving around in search of marshes where the snails are numerous. ![]() For many years, birds of this population were known as Everglades Kites, and they have long been considered endangered. Snail Kites are very widespread in the American tropics, from Mexico and Cuba to Argentina, but in the United States they are restricted to freshwater marshes of peninsular Florida.
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