Black-shouldered Kite (Elanus caerulus)

Till Inskipp came along and complicated our lives, this was the Black-winged Kite!

Black-shouldered Kite is a small and graceful, predominantly pale grey and white, raptor with black shoulders and red eyes. Their primary call is a clear whistle, uttered in flight. Their preferred habitat is open grasslands with scattered trees and they are often seen hunting along roadsides. Black-shouldered Kites are around 35 to 38 cm in length. The sexes are similar, with females only just larger than males. The breeding season is usually August to January. The red eye is marked by a black comma that extends behind it. The nostrils are yellow and the legs and feet are also yellow.

Black-shouldered Kite or Black winged Kite is a small and graceful, predominantly pale grey and white, raptor with black shoulders and red eyes. Their primary call is a clear whistle, uttered in flight. Their preferred habitat is open grasslands with scattered trees and they are often seen hunting along roadsides. Black-shouldered Kites are around 35 to 38 cm in length. The sexes are similar, with females only just larger than males. The breeding season is usually August to January. The red eye is marked by a black comma that extends behind it. The nostrils are yellow and the legs and feet are also yellow. Black-shouldered Kites are around 35 to 38 cm in length (13.8 to 15 in) and have a wingspan of between 80 and 95 cm.

This footage is part of the professionally-shot stock footage archive of Wilderness Films India Ltd., the largest collection of imagery from South Asia. The Wilderness Films India collection comprises of thousands of hours of high quality broadcast imagery, mostly shot on HDCAM 1080i High Definition, HDV and Digital Betacam. Write to us for licensing this footage on a broadcast format, for use in your production! We pride ourselves in bringing the best of India and South Asia to the world... wfi @ vsnl.com and [email protected].