ML619400358

Age

Not specified

Sex

Not specified

Observation details

At 9:55 AM the first raptor I spotted at the Presque Isle Hawk Watch was a Mississippi Kite flying in from the west. Before getting very close to us it turned and headed to the SE, so it never got very close. Perhaps 1/2 mile or so away from us. We had the bird in few for just a minute or two before we lost it behind some trees. The long squared-off tail was my first clue that it was a kite, then I saw the long narrow pointed wings, bent at the wrists, much like a nighthawk. It was on a glide with wings held in an arch giving it a bit of a hunched back appearance, most of the time we watched it, but it occasionally looked like it was grabbing something in the air. Surprisingly, I was able to capture some identifiable images, including some images of it with its legs down and one where the kite appears to be eating something held in its talons. Since it was severely backlit, plumage characteristics could not be determined. See photos

Technical information

Model

DSC-RX10M4

ISO

100

Focal length

220 mm

Flash

Flash did not fire, auto

f-stop

f/7.1

Shutter speed

1/1000 sec

Dimensions

472 pixels x 357 pixels

Original file size

15.32 KB