Grey-headed Kite

The Gray-headed Kite, known scientifically as Leptodon cayanensis, is a medium-sized raptor with a length ranging from 46 to 53 centimeters and a weight between 410 and 605 grams. Adults are characterized by a distinguished grey head, contrasting black upperparts, and stark white underparts. Their tail is black, adorned with two or three white bars, while their bill is a striking blue and legs a muted grey. In flight, they exhibit a methodical pattern of flap-flap-glide, which is quite deliberate in its execution.

Identification Tips

When identifying the Gray-headed Kite, look for the adult's grey head and the unique pattern of the black tail with white bars. The blue bill and grey legs are also key features. Juveniles can be more challenging to identify due to their mimicry of other raptor species and the existence of three distinct color morphs: light, rufous, and dark. Each morph resembles a different species of hawk-eagle, with variations in head, neck, and underpart coloration, as well as the presence of malar stripes and crests in some.

Habitat

This kite favors open woodlands and swamp forests, where it can be seen perched high, surveying the area for potential prey.

Distribution

The species breeds across a wide range, from eastern Mexico and Trinidad down through South America to Peru, Bolivia, Brazil, and northern Argentina.

Behaviour

The Gray-headed Kite is known for its preference for high perches, from which it swoops down on its prey with precision. It is a solitary nester, constructing its nest high in a tree, lined with grass, and laying one or two white eggs that are purplish at one end and spotted brown.

Song & Calls

Its vocalization is a distinctive mewling 'keow', which can be heard echoing through its habitat.

Breeding

The breeding behavior involves creating a nest made of sticks and lined with grass, placed high in a tree. The clutch typically consists of one or two eggs, which are white with purplish and brown markings.

Similar Species

Juvenile Gray-headed Kites can be confused with several hawk-eagle species due to their remarkable mimicry. The light morph resembles the Black-and-white hawk-eagle, the rufous morph the Ornate hawk-eagle, and the dark morph the Black hawk-eagle.

Diet and Feeding

The diet of the Gray-headed Kite is predominantly reptilian, with a preference for arboreal geckos, other lizards, and snakes. It also consumes frogs, molluscs, large insects, including larvae and combs of hornets, wasps, and bees, as well as eggs, young, or injured birds.

Conservation status

The Gray-headed Kite is currently listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, indicating that, at present, there are no immediate threats to its population numbers on a global scale.