red kite

[whaleomeloette]

are red kites rare? do they do special releases?
where do they like to live?
i saw somthing the other day that wasnt a buzzard- looked like one of these- i doubt it but you never know
the more photos i see of them im convinced.

[elvisoneill]

whaleomelette

They are beginning to spread throughout the country.

the RSPB have successfully released them in Scotland and Northern Ireland
but they are familiar sights in parts of Wales and in the Midlands,particularly in Leicestershire.

People have reported them as far south as Sussex so you may well have seen one.

Watch out for the great big tail...its a dead giveaway!

[Guinnessman1974]

Look for the 'forked' tail, one of the key feature of Red kites.

They are a common site in some parts of the U.K I was in a car driving through Oxfordshire last week. Between several junctions of the M40, I counted no less than 54 of these birds!

Including a flock of 13 Red Kites.

I also saw one last week in my home town of Bridgnorth, Shropshire last week!

[whaleomeloette]

im in shockk im in liverpool- do i report it?
theres a little forest not far from here and lots of fields about 15 mins drive away
but i saw it here:
thats a gas tanker- gives a scale of size of waste land, would that be suitable habitiat?


can watch it from my bedroom, oh my lordy!

[whaleomeloette]

Originally Posted by Guinnessman1974

. Between several junctions of the M40, I counted no less than 54 of these birds!

thats crazy! amazing though

[Jim Ford]

Around the Chilterns almost any biggish bird in the sky is going to be a red kite. They seem to be much more common than buzzards.

Jim

[RKB]

Originally Posted by Guinnessman1974

Look for the 'forked' tail, one of the key feature of Red kites.

They are a common site in some parts of the U.K I was in a car driving through Oxfordshire last week. Between several junctions of the M40, I counted no less than 54 of these birds!

Including a flock of 13 Red Kites.

A flock of 13 is 'small' for there. There is a roost of 300 birds on that part of the M40, and it's not hard to see 30 or 40 together during the day, particularly over some of the towns where people feed them in their gardens. I've had up to 5 taking bread (!) in my garden, and they even nested on my street. They're the most commonly-seen raptor by far between Reading and Oxford (and one of the top 10 most commonly seen birds).

[Jim Ford]

I've mentioned before in another thread:

I was talking to a local in Watlington, which is a red kite 'hot-spot' and they said they're a mixed blessing - big birds=big do-dos. They make quite a mess on cars and patios!

Jim

[RKB]

Originally Posted by Jim Ford

I've mentioned before in another thread:

I was talking to a local in Watlington, which is a red kite 'hot-spot' and they said they're a mixed blessing - big birds=big do-dos. They make quite a mess on cars and patios!

Jim

Yeah, I know the place - have counted 62 together hanging above there! They're also very noisy, especially fledged juveniles. They have a pleasant whistle, a bit like a neighing horse, but they do call A LOT when they're hanging out in the trees. They also march around the school playing fields on wet mornings, like gulls.

[joeted]

Im in Basingstoke and see red kites all the time and also I work quite alot in Reading in a not very nice part with no woodland around for miles and you get the same few kites there all the time scavenging for food.Great site great bird.I still wouldnt say there as common as Buzzards around my area yet tho.