White-tailed Kite
Elanus leucurus
SPECIES OF THE MONTH
White-tailed Kite
• Small to medium-sized raptor
• Long, forked-tail and narrow, pointed wings
• Wingspan - up to 43 inches
• Underside - white, black wing tips, wristlet spots
• Topside - pale gray, black shoulders, white head
• Juveniles - cinnamon wash on breast and crown
• Can hover in the air like a kite!
• Permanent California residents
• In coastal areas, west of the Sierra Nevada foothills, Central Valley, and arid regions of southern California
• In several Core Areas in western Riverside County
• Also breeds in OR, WA, TX, and FL
White-tailed Kite
• Foraging habitat:
agriculture, grasslands, alkali marsh,
playas and vernal pools, freshwater
marsh, Riversidean alluvial fan sage
scrub, and chaparral
• Breeding habitat:
riparian scrub, woodland, and
forest; juniper woodland and scrub;
and oak woodland and forests
Habitat
Nesting Season
• Courtship – early December
• Nest construction – early January
• Egg laying – early February
• Clutch size – 3 to 5 eggs
• Incubation period – 30 to 32 days
• Young fledge (leave nest) – 4 to 5 weeks
• Young remain dependent on parents for 2 to 3 months
• May attempt a second brood (nest again in the same season) Species Objectives
1) At least 19,880 acres of suitable breeding habitat.
*To date, conserved ~15,224 acres
2) At least 10 core breeding areas including:
Prado Basin/ Santa Ana River, Lake Mathews-Estelle
Mountain, Temescal Wash, Wasson Canyon, Murrieta
Creek, Temecula Creek, Vail Lake, Wilson Valley, Lake
Skinner, Diamond Valley Lake area, Lake Perris/Mystic
Lake
3) At least 281,890 acres of suitable foraging habitat. *To date, conserved ~156,149 acres
Species Objectives
4) Protect, and buffer from disturbance, the known winter roost area along San Timoteo Creek and any future identified winter roost locations. *This includes a 250-meter radius buffer around roost site to include conservation of undeveloped habitat.
5) Maintain (once every 3 years) the continued use of, and successful reproduction at 75% of the Core breeding Areas.
THANK YOU!