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.MISSISSIPPI KITE. 

 Ictinia mississippieusis. 



DESCRIPTION. 



"General form short and compact. Bill short, tip emargin- 

 ated; wings long, pointed; tail rather short, emarginated; tarsi 

 short. 



^^Adult. — Upper parts of body dark lead color, nearly black 

 on rump; head and under parts cinereous, darkest on abdomen; 

 quills and tail brownish-black; * * * tips of secondaries 

 ashy-white; a longitudinal stripe on each web of primaries 

 chestnut rufous." (Length of male about 14 inches extent 

 about ne; female a little larger.)— B. B. of N. A. 



Habitat. — Southern United States, southward from South 

 Carolina on the coast, and Wisconsin and Iowa in the interior 

 to Mexico. Rare straggler in Pennsylvania. 



I have never met with it in this State. The only 

 specimen that has been taken here, so far as I can 

 learn, was shot in September, 1892, in Cumberhind 

 (;ounty. This specimen is in the museum of the Penii 

 svivania State College. 



FEEDS ON INSECTS. 



Dr. Fisher's examinations of the stomachs of this 

 Kite, show that it subsists like the Swallow-tailed 

 Kite, principally on grasshoppers, large beetles, katy- 

 dids, crickets, etc. It does not visit the poultry yard 

 and game birds or game mammals are never attacked 

 by it. Lizards, small-sized snakes and frogs are some- 

 times preyed upon by this Kite when insect food is not 

 readily secured. 



Never having had the opportunity of studying this 

 bird in life I take the following extracts from Dr. 

 Fisher's Bulletin: 



The Mif-sissippi Kite, like the other American species, in- 

 habits the more southern parts of our terrirory. It is dis- 

 tributed f!(ini Guatemala north through eastarn .\Tpxico anj 

 the soutl-ern T'nit(>d States (>ast of th-^ Rficky Mountains, 



