50 



THE SWALLOW-TAILED KITE. 



as far as the falls of St. Anthony, in the forty-fourth degree of north latitude. They appear 

 in the United States about the close of April or the beginning of May, and are very numerous 

 in the Mississippi territory, twenty or thirty being sometimes visible at the same time. In the 

 month of October they begin to return to the south, at which season Mr. Bateman observed 

 them in great numbers assembled in Florida, soaring steadily at great elevations for several 

 days in succession, and slowly passing to their winter quarters along the Gulf of Mexico." 



Audubon remarks that it has never been seen farther eastward than Pennsylvania, and 

 that only a few solitary individuals have been discovered in that locality. Towards the south 

 it becomes more numerous, and in Louisiana and Mississippi it is extremely abundant, arriving 

 in considerable numbers at the beginning of April, as many as a hundred having been counted 



in the space of a single hour, all passing 

 directly from east to west. On their first 

 arrival they are so fatigued with their 

 journey that they are easily approached ; 

 but owing to their habit of soaring at an 

 immense height, they are tolerably safe 

 even from man at all other seasons. 



This falcon bears so strong an ex- 

 ternal resemblance to the swallow, that 

 it might easily be taken for a common 

 swallow or swift, as it flies circling in 

 the air in search of the insect prey on 

 which it usually feeds. Even the flight 

 is very much of the same character in 

 both birds, and the mode of feeding very 

 similar. The usual food of the Swallow- 

 tailed Kite consists of the larger insects, 

 which it either catches on the wing, or 

 snatches from the leaves as it shoots past 

 the bushes. Various locusts, cicadse, and 

 other insects, are captured in this man- 

 ner. It also follows the honey buzzard 

 in its fondness for wasps and their larvae, 

 and has been noticed to excavate a wasp's 

 nest, and to tear away the comb precisely 

 like that bird. Reptiles, such as small 

 snakes, lizards, and frogs, also form part 

 of the food of this elegant bird. While 

 it is engaged in the pursuit of such prey, 

 or in catching the large insects upon the branches, it may be approached and shot without 

 much difficulty, as it is so intent upon its prey that it fails to notice its human foe. 



Audubon found that when he had succeeded in killing one of these birds, he could shoot 

 as many more as he chose, because they have a habit of circling round the body of their 

 slaughtered comrade, and sweep round it as if they were endeavoring to carry it away. Taking 

 advantage of this peculiarity, he was enabled to procure as many specimens as he desired, 

 shooting them as fast as he could reload his gun. 



The Fork-tailed Kite, or Swallow-tail, so called, is peculiarly an American form, the genus 

 having only one species. It belongs to the tropical and subtropical regions more properly, but 

 is occasionally seen as far north as Pennsylvania. It is common on the Mississippi Valley as 

 far as Wisconsin, where it breeds. Few groups of birds vary in their habits more than Hawks 

 and Kites. The last species noticed was really graceful in its movements on the ground, while 

 the present bird is awkward in the extreme. This species of Kite is far from awkward in his 

 proper element, however ; he is there a swallow-like flyer, his long, forked tail sweeping the 

 air most gracefully. This bird has the singular faculty of also feeding on the wing. He has 



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