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Birds
Black-winged kite
Black-winged kite · Elanus caeruleus
Black-winged kites fascinate with their bright eyes and elegant hovering flight over open steppe – a bird of prey for more refined wildlife watching.
Fact file
- Size
- Around 30–35 cm long, wingspan up to 95 cm, weight between 200 and 300 grams
- Males and females
- Males and females look similar, females usually slightly larger
- Sounds
- Soft, high-pitched calls, often sharp alarm calls during the breeding season
- Diet
- Hunts mainly small mammals such as mice, less often birds or large insects
- Offspring
- Lays 3–5 eggs, incubation about 28 days, young birds fledge after 35 days
How to identify Black-winged kite
Black-winged kites show a striking play of colours: their plumage is mainly light grey to white, contrasted by black wing tips and a distinctive black patch behind the red eyes. In flight the underside appears almost white, while the upperparts shine grey.
With a length of around 30 to 35 centimetres and a wingspan of up to 95 centimetres, black-winged kites look rather dainty and compact. Their slender build, pointed wings and fairly short, slightly forked tail help you tell them apart reliably from other birds of prey.
More in the app
With Wildful Stories+ you also get in the app:
- general viewing tips
Where Black-winged kite live
Botswana
South Africa
Namibia
- Brandberg
- Buffalo Core Area
- Bwabwata Nationalpark
- Damaraland
- Dolomite & Olifantsrus
- Etosha Nationalpark
- Halali
- Hoanib
- Kalahari
- Kwando Core Area
- Mahango Core Area
- Mudumu Nationalpark
- NamibRand Nature Reserve
- Namutoni
- Nkasa Rupara National Park
- Okaukuejo
- Palmwag
- Rundu
- Spitzkoppe
- Swakopmund
- Twyfelfontein
- Walvis Bay
- Waterberg Plateau
- Windhoek
Discover Black-winged kite on your trip.
The app shows you where and when to see wildlife along your route.
