Red Kite: how to recognise it
A bird of Europe, Africa and Asia. Learn the marks that make it easy to identify, then practise with real photographs in Lore.
Practise with real photosAll species guides
Photo © Dr. Sven Gippner · CC BY · iNaturalist · all photo credits
- Scientific name
- Milvus milvus
- Family
- Hawks, Eagles, and Kites
- Size
- About 63 cm
- Habitat
- Open farmland with woods
- Found in
- Europe, Africa and Asia
The key marks
A deeply forked rusty tail, long narrow wings with white patches near the tips and a pale grey head. Common Buzzard has a short, fan-shaped tail.
Voice
A thin, mewing 'weee-ooo'.
Good to know
It tilts its forked tail like a rudder as it soars.
Do not confuse with
Compare it with the Common Buzzard. Look at the marks above one by one rather than the overall colour, and practise telling the two apart with real photos.
Where and when
You can expect to find it in open farmland with woods. It is especially common in Spain. Distribution changes with the seasons and from year to year, so check a recent local observation source before you go looking.