PLEASE NOTE - I WILL CONTINUE TO KEEP THE LOCATIONS OF MOST OR ALL OF
THESE NESTS QUIET UNLESS THE CIRCUMSTANCES PERMIT AND I ENCOURAGE ANYONE
WHO FINDS A NEST TO KEEP THE LOCATION SECRET. THE POPULARITY OF THESE
BIRDS FOR PHOTOGRAPHERS (AND BIRDERS WITH CAMERAS) IS A MESSY SITUATION
WITH HOME OWNERS AND NEIGHBORS. The kites don't seem to care at all, but
the people do.
The population of Mississippi Kites in New Hampshire continues to dangle
by a thread as the summer of 2026 produced ZERO new chicks and no new
pairs were detected. The Kites first became famous by nesting in
Newmarket in 2008 and this is (at least) the 19th consecutive year that
kites (between 1 and 4 pairs) have nested in New Hampshire in this
isolated, rare, nesting colony.
DURHAM - Things started out wonderfully with the pair that successfully
fledged a chick last year returning to their territory in Durham. First
reported on May 17th, the birds decided to build a new nest about 100
yards from last year's nest. The nest was very similar to last year's;
in the crotch of a tall white pine, very high up. Nest building was
reported on May 23rd and incubation started on or about June 3rd. No
evidence of young on July 9th, but hatching was presumably confirmed
with an adult appearing to feed young on July 10th.
Then things started going downhill and it's still a puzzle as to what
might have happened!? Visits after the 10th failed to see any
additional feedings and the female acted strangely; sometimes she
appeared to be brooding over a chick and at other times standing on the
edge of the nest, and even sitting on nest as if still incubating! The
male was rarely seen. This odd behavior continued for 3 weeks (!) until
July 31st when the female seemed to be at times still incubating! Both
birds then departed the nest and disappeared soon after this. Hard to
say what happened, but it seems clear the chick died early, but why did
the female continue on the nest? Was she caring for a dead chick? Or
did she discard a dead chick (as they will do) and then attempt to
incubate a 2nd egg in the nest that never hatched. Mississippi Kites
generally lay 2 eggs in their normal range, but in New Hampshire WE HAVE
NEVER SEEN TWO CHICKS IN A NEST. Always just one.
DOVER - Like the Durham pair, the Dover pair returned and everyone was
optimistic!! They chose to nest in the exact same spot as last year in
the top of a white pine, but the nest was difficult to see. The first
report of a bird came with photos of a male on May 26th. By June 6th,
two birds were confirmed with adults exchanging food away from the nest
and on June 7th and 8th they were seen copulating. By June 14th
incubation was under way, but it's not clear when it started. As of
July 9th everything looked fine with the female at the nest still
incubating. But then, like Durham, everything fell apart. There were
no visitations from anyone to the nest territory between June 9th and
June 17th, but on June 18th a single bird was seen flying in the area.
A visit on July 20th, however, showed NO BIRDS AND NO NEST AT ALL!
EVERYTHING WAS GONE! My best guess is that a strong storm blew down the
nest sometime within the previous week or perhaps a predator climbed up
the tree and took down the whole nest.
OTHER PAIRS - This wasn't a good year for finding new pairs, but it's
possible that there were two additional pairs in the general area and
possibly a hidden nest....or two!? My guess is that there's a nest
somewhere in Newmarket, but not sure where. Two birds were seen flying
overhead there on June 2nd and additional single bird sightings were
received on June 11 and June 13. In addition, it's still unclear if
there might be a 2nd pair in Durham. Two birds were seen near the old
nesting area on Madbury Road on June 1st! But aside from these isolated
reports, no strong evidence of a territory or nesting behavior was
observed. The best way to find nests is when they're feeding young, so
any sightings of kites in July or August need to be followed up on!
A summary of confirmed fledged Kites (and pairs of kites present) from
recent years in NH:
2026 - 0 (2 pairs)
2025 - 2 (4 pairs)
2024 - 0 (3 pairs)
2023 - 1 (4 pairs)
2022 - 1 (4 or 5 pairs)
2021 - 1 (4 pairs)
2020 - 3 (3 pairs)
Thanks to all who helped out this year and contributed to this information.
Steve Mirick
Bradford, MA
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