Swallow-tailed Kite Migration: Palmetto spotted in Georgia

Wednesday, August 14, 2013

Palmetto spotted in Georgia

Our colleague, Todd Schneider, a wildlife biologist with the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, took some photos of an aggregation of about 50 Swallow-tailed Kites and 20 Mississippi Kites in late July in Long County, Georgia. When he reviewed his photos later on he noticed an antenna on one of the birds. He contacted us with the time and coordinates. Based on our tracking data, we were able to determine this was a photo of Palmetto, one of the Swallow-tailed Kites we are tracking by satellite.

This photo shows Palmetto on July 27th with the transmitter's antenna visible.

At the time of our last update, Palmetto was still staging in the Greeen Swamp in west central Florida.Photo credit: Todd Schneider

Avian Research and Conservation Institute

Once seen along the Mississippi River as far north as Minnesota, the Swallow-tailed Kite's range is now just a third its historic size. In the last 40 years, up to 80% of formerly common bird species have declined.

ARCI works to develop management techniques for these at-risk birds, but we must apply them now, before their recovery becomes impossible.

Since 1996, we have used satellite telemetry to study the ecology of Swallow-tailed Kites, including the 10,000 mile migration they make each year to the humid plains of Brazil and back to the lowlands of the southeast U.S.

Avian Research and Conservation Institute (ARCI) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that has gained attention and respect for difficult, problem-solving research on rare and imperiled birds.

Learn more at www.arcinst.org