Below is an adult White-tailed Kite (Elanus leucurus) perched on a Douglas-fir.
In the photo above, note the all white breast of the adult. In contrast, juveniles often have a tawny or rust-colored "necklace" across the breast (see below).
When hunting, kites hover in place, searching the ground below for small mammals (next image).
Once committed to a dive, they hold their wings at a very steep angle and almost seem to flutter towards the ground. It's very different from the high speed stoop of a falcon. The vertical drop of a White-tailed Kite somehow has a very graceful and delicate quality (although I don't think you'd feel the same way if you were the prey!).
Click here to review the earlier post about White-tailed Kites.
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