Hi all,
 
Aaron Boone, Scott Albaugh, and I were at the now legendary Brass Ring
Golf Course in Hocking County at 8 am this morning to look for the
Mississippi Kites. Chad Galloway, the manager of the course, has taken a
real interest in these kites and had been keeping me apprised of his
observations. He recently called to report seeing three kites
simultaneously, as did at least one other golf course employee. Before
proceeding with this story, I really want to thank Chad and the
management of the golf course for becoming so interested in these birds
and keeping a sharp eye out for signs of nesting. I know that had it
been possible, he would have let everyone inside to see them, but that
just isn't possible on an active golf course without much disruption to
the golfers and increased liability for the golf course. Nonetheless, I
think everyone who wanted got to see the birds from adjacent Keller
Road, as they often hunted over the nearby fairway or passed over that
area in their wanderings.
 
We found a fresh juvenile Mississippi Kite within minutes of arriving;
boldly streaked with rich brown striping below, and intricately marked
with whitish feather edgings above. Down feathers are still obvious in
places, so it can't have been out of the nest too long. For the next
three plus hours we were able to observe it at close range more or less
constantly. It spent most of its time high in the dead branches of a
shagbark hickory, sticking out like a sore thumb. It was even more
conspicuous due to its begging calls, which began every time it spotted
the adult bird. The calls were reminiscent of the first two notes of an
Olive-sided Flycatcher song; two-toned whistles that carried a good
distance. In Brian Wheeler's excellent book, Raptors of Eastern North
America, he notes that "recently fledged youngsters are highly vocal".
That's the truth!
 
We saw the adult feed the juvenile numerous times. In every case where
we could see the prey item well, it was a cicada. There were also plenty
of migrating Green Darner dragonflies about and it may have been
catching those as well. We quickly learned when a feeding was coming, as
the youngster would start to whistle and this would increase intensity
as the adult neared. When the adult kite neared the tree that the
juvenile was in, it would deftly transfer the cicada from its foot to
its bill, land near the young bird, and pass it over. On a few occasions
the youngster made extended flights, once trying to grab a butterfly but
failing miserably. From about 10-11 am, it sat in the same branches in
the hickory and was fed 12 times by the adult - about once every five
minutes. That's a lot of big, fat cicadas.
 
I have a new respect for the acrobatic abilities of adults of this
species. Catching fast, direct-flying cicadas can't be very easy. Its
modus operandi seemed to be to patrol low over the forest canopy,
watching for a cicada to fly from tree to tree and then pouncing. Then,
it was off to the gluttonous juvenile with the bounty. We only saw one
adult for sure; it had molted a few flight feathers and that gave the
bird a distinctive pattern that enabled us to recognize it. 
 
We think we know the general area where the nest is, but dense foliage
has kept us from finding it. Perhaps after the leaves fall it can be
located. It is possible that the other adult has already headed south,
and I suspect that the juvenile and the adult that is feeding it will
soon be out of there. If you haven't seen them and want to, I'd
recommend getting down there soon. There should be no problem getting
looks at flying birds from the usual spots along Keller Rd. along the
north side of the course.
 
I took nearly 200 photos today, many of which came out well. Aaron took
lots, too, and his digiscoped images are truly outstanding, including
many of the adult passing food to the youngster. He also got lots of
excellent video. I will post some photos on my blog
http://jimmccormac.blogspot.com/ later tonight if you are interested in
seeing them.
 
Please let us know if you see the kites after today. It would be useful
to know when they depart. It will also be interesting to see if they
return here next year to nest. This is the first confirmed nesting
record of Mississippi Kite in Ohio.
 
Jim McCormac
 
Jim McCormac
Ohio Division of Wildlife
2045 Morse Rd., G-3
Columbus, Ohio 43229
614-265-6440
 

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