This summer, New Hampshire had 3 known nest territories for Mississippi
Kites and 2 chicks successfully fledged. This is (at least) the 11th
consecutive year that kites (between 1 and 3 pairs) have nested in New
Hampshire in this isolated, rare, nesting colony.
DURHAM - The"Madbury Road" territory was first noted in 2017 and last
year's nest successfully fledged one chick. This year, they moved the
nest down the street a couple hundred yards, and once again, the pair
chose to nest in a white pine tree in someone's back yard. And once
again, the home owners were very gracious and welcoming to birders.
This nest was visited by countless numbers of birders and apparently
there were no "major" issues with birders, other than some minor
trespassing. Incubation started roughly June 11 and hatching occurred
roughly July 11. The nest successfully fledged a single chick. The
chick was still being taken care of by the adults at least as late as
August 27th, and possibly on September 2nd.
NEWMARKET - This is the 2nd year in a row for this pair at this spot and
last year they fledged one chick. This year, they chose to nest in the
same tree, high in an oak tree I believe. As last year, in a front yard
along a driveway in a residential neighborhood. I've tried to keep this
territory a bit more secretive to discourage lots of visitors. It's not
in a very photogenic location anyway. Incubation started roughly June
7and hatching occurred roughly July 7. The nest successfully fledged a
single chick. The chick was still being taken care of by the adults at
least as late as September 1st, but they may have left the region
shortly after that.
STRATHAM - This territory was first noted in 2017 and last year's nest
successfully fledged one chick. This year, they moved the nest down the
street about a hundred yards, but this year the pair moved from an oak
tree into a white pine tree, high up. Again, the pair chose to nest in
someone's yard along the driveway, but the nest was not visible from the
road and the location was kept a secret. Incubation started on June 15
or perhaps earlier, but the NEST FAILED. On or around July 1st, the
pair abandoned incubation. The cause of the failure is uncertain, but
there were some severe thunderstorms the evening prior to the failure.
This nest was in a spindly white pine that swayed severely with strong
winds, and I suspect the egg was lost from the wind during the storm.
OTHER TERRITORIES - Nothing conclusive. There were additional adult
birds seen at the nest in Durham (especially when Ed Norton videotaped 3
adults in the nest!!) and another at the nest in Newmarket, so it's at
least possible that there was another 4th undiscovered nest out there.
I thought the sighting and photo by Deb Powers of a kite chasing an
Osprey in Durham about a mile from the nest site on Madbury Road was
significant. And there were some suspicious sightings in Newmarket
which may indicate a second pair somewhere; however, Jane and I did a
lot of searching, but no luck.
A few tidbits I've observed over the 11 years the kites have nested in NH:
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* 100% of the nests found in NH have been in residential subdivisions
with mature trees. Nests are almost always in front, side, or rear
yards of homes!!! The birds are oblivious to anything going on below
them whether it be dogs barking, lawn mowers, kids screaming, or hordes
of birders watching them.
* Tree types have varied and have been found in oak, pine, maple, and
hickory at least. But the nest is always quite high. Sometimes in
outer branches vulnerable to wind.
* Of all of the nests I have ever heard about in 11 years, I have never
seen, nor heard about any more than a single head poking up out of the
nest. It would appear that the kites in NH only lay a single egg!!!
This seems interesting, since I believe they normally lay 1 to 3 eggs in
their normal range. Is this a modification in their egg laying behavior
to accommodate a shorter breeding season this far north?
* Food items I've seen have been mostly dragonflies and cicadas. One
memorable observation was when we saw one eating a bat. And this year,
we saw an adult feed a chick a fledged juvenile Eastern Bluebird. The
first bird we've seen being eaten by a kite.
* Adult care of the single chick continues right up into early September
(or nearly 1 month after fledging) . It seems like a long process and I
wonder if the adults migrate with the chick as they head south?
A few photos of mine over the years:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/stevemirick/albums/72157698355238091
Steve Mirick
Bradford, MA
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