This past week my friend and fellow photographer Art Nadelman and I ventured down to the Fort Myers area in search of snail kites. I’ve written about snail kites on a couple of occasions in the past. Most recently we had a great day photographing kites near Gainesville. But this week was the best yet for capturing images of these beautiful birds.
Snail kites are on the Federal Endangered Species list. They are only found in certain areas of Florida in the US. Their diet consists primarily of large apple snails. It’s fascinating to watch them hunt for and grab the snails from the water. They go in feet first and pluck the snails out of the shallows then fly off to a nearby perch to pick the meat out of the shell. Apple snails are aptly named because they can grow to the size of a small apple. For reference, here is a photo of one in my hand.
We see snail kites occasionally throughout the year but rarely find more than a couple at a time. This week we found a larger group that included 3 males which is very unusual. The males are a beautiful blue-gray color with bright orange feet and bills and red eyes. Two of the males were banded.
I’ve listed some links for more information on snail kites.
- https://www.snailkite.org/important-facts
- https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Snail_Kite/lifehistory
- https://fl.audubon.org/birds/snail-kite
- https://www.nps.gov/ever/learn/nature/snailkite.htm
More photos have been uploaded to the Kites gallery.
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