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. Lores 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. 



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