Black Kite Milvus migrans
A familiar and common species in much of Europe but a very rare visitor to the UK, mainly in spring. Although recorded annually in Norfolk most records involve birds moving straight through and it is consequently a difficult bird to connect with here.
Although identification is not difficult given good views, British claims of this species have an extremely high rejection rate, that is a high proportion of reports are deemed unproven. Usually the confusion is not with its closest congener, the Red Kite (although dark Red Kites can create confusion with well-marked Black Kites), but Marsh Harriers, especially ones with moulting tail feathers which may give the impression of having a forked tail.
Some authorities now treat the Asian form, Black-eared Kite, as a separate species. Some very poor quality images of this form appear on their own page. Scroll down to the bottom of this page for images of the African and Arabian forms, Yellow-billed Kite.
![]() |
![]() |
|
Black Kite, Viguerat (Bouche-du-Rhone, France), 6th May 1999
|
|
![]() |
![]() |
|
Black Kite, Camargue (Bouche-du-Rhone, France), 4th May 1999
|
Black Kite, Entressen Tip (Bouche-du-Rhone, France), 26th May 2000
|
Black Kites from Europe winter in Africa but the birds that breed in Africa are often treated as a different species, Yellow-billed Kite Milvus aegyptius. Birds in Malawi (below) belong to the race parasites:
|
|
|
|
|
|
Yellow-billed Kite, Satemwa Tea Estate, Thyolo (Malawi), 29th September 2008
|
|
|
|
|
Yellow-billed Kite, Nyika Plateau (Malawi), 5th October 2008
|
|
Yellow-billed Kites in Arabia are referred to as 'arabicus' differing from typical African aegyptius in a number of ways that perhaps indicate some introgression with Black Kite milvans. This one was too high to get any decent shots - these were the best I could manage.
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
|
Yellow-billed Kite, Sahnawt Farm (Dhofar, Oman), 11th November 2017
|
|

.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)


%20(1).jpg)
%20(2).jpg)
%20(3).jpg)
%20(4).jpg)
%20(5).jpg)