The Mississippi kite was first named and described by the Scottish ornithologist Alexander Wilson in 1811, in the third volume of his American Ornithology. Wilson gave the kite the Latin binomial name of … See more

The summer breeding territory of the Mississippi kite is in the Central and Southern United States; the southern Great Plains is considered a stronghold for the species. … See more

Mississippi kites are social raptors, gathering in roosts in late summer. They do not maintain strict territories.
Food and feeding
The diet of the Mississippi kite consists mostly of larger-bodied invertebrates and insects See more

Adults are gray with darker gray on their tail feathers and outer wings and lighter gray on their heads and inner wings. Kites of all ages have red eyes and red to yellow legs. Males and females look alike, but the males are slightly paler on the head and neck. Young kites … See more

The species was in-decline in the mid-1900s, but now has an increasing population and expanding range. While the Mississippi kite is … See more

• Mississippi Kite – Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center Article
• Mississippi kite videos on the Internet Bird Collection
Historical material
• "Falco Mississippiensis, Mississippi Kite"; in American … See more