EVERGLADE KITE 
330. Rostrhamus sociabilis. 15 in. 
Bill very slender and much hooked, the lower mandi- 
ble being decurved somewhat, to match the upper; the 
cutting edge of the bill without a tooth or notch, 
as most hawks and kites have. lLores naked and yel- 
lowish, like the cere; eyes red. Plumage blackish; rump 
and bases of outer tail feathers, as well as tip white. 
This tropical species is found in the United States, only 
in the southern half of Florida, in the densest swamps, 
being fairly abundant in the Everglades. They are said 
to feed exclusively upon a certain species of water snail, 
and each bird has a particular perch to which he takes 
every snail he captures, and after skillfully extracting 
the animal with its curiously modified beak, it drops 
the shell on the mound beneath. (Bendire). 
Nest.—Of twigs, lined with leaves and weeds, placed 
at low elevations in bushes or underbrush, often over 
water; eggs pale greenish-white, spotted with brown. 
Range.—Southern Florida. 
