Red Kite (Milvus milvus) [XC78795]
by Sonnenburg from Bad Sebastiansweiler, Baden-W\u00fcrttemberg, Germany (call)
(Milvus milvus) [XC425664]
by Frank Holzapfel from Dahme-Spreewald (near Heidesee), Brandenburg, Germany (call)
Nest
A platform of sticks and mud, in a tree.
Eggs (Guide)
2 - 3; white; ellipsoidal. Incubation: about 29 days; by female.
Subspecies
Milvus milvus (Sibley and Monroe 1990, 1993) has been split into Red Kite (Milvus milvus) and Cape Verde Kite (Milvus fasciicauda) by Hazevoet (1995), but for reasons given in Johnson et al. (2005) this treatment has not been adopted by the BirdLife Taxonomic Working Group.
Subspecies fasciicauda may be distinct species. Hybridizes with Black Kite (Milvus migrans).
The following 2 subspecies are recognised:
milvus (Linnaeus, 1758) - Southern Sweden east to Ukraine and south through central Europe to western and central Mediterranean Basin; Wales; Caucasus. Formerly Canary Is.
fasciicauda Hartert, 1914 - Cape Verde Is. Considered by some authors to be a distinct species, Cape Verde Kite (Milvus fasciicauda).
The Reader's Digest Book of British Birds 1980, 3rd Edition, Drive Publications Ltd ISBN 0 340 25308 8
Birds in Colour Campbell, B., 1960, Penguin Books Ltd
The Pocket Guide to Nest and Eggs Fitter, R.S.R., 1954, Collins
RSPB Handbook of British Birds Holden, P., Cleeves, T., 2002, A & C Black ISBN 0 7136 5713 8
Birds of Britain and Europe Sterry, P., et al., 2001, AA Publishing ISBN 0 7495 3068 5
The Popular Handbook of British Birds Hollom, P.A.D., 1973, H.F. & G. Witherby Ltd ISBN 0 85493 002 7
BirdLife International Species Factsheet