The Red Kite........

Absolutely stunning morning here, not a cloud in the sky, and the sky is a beautiful blue from horizon to horizon.

Apart from the occasional aeroplane passing overhead at around 26,000 feet, the largest thing in the sky apart from the sun, is this Red Kite. if i had to guess i'd say it's wing span was around the 6 feet mark, making it hard to miss in a clear sky.
That has to be a bonus for all of it's prey animals, especially when you can see a predator approaching from a mile away.

The Red Kite's diet consists mainly of small mammals such as mice, voles, shrews, young hares and rabbits. It feeds on a wide variety of carrion including sheep carcasses and dead game birds. Live birds are also taken and occasionally reptiles and amphibians. Earthworms form an important part of the diet, especially in spring.

Generally they can be seen in pairs or family groups, but this particular bird was alone, maybe it's partner was on the nest. Worst case scenario, it's partner may have died due to being poisoned, which unfortunately still happens even though it's now illegal.

For me it's a stunning looking bird, with its long wings, quite large body, and relatively small swallow like tail, just beautiful.

Larger image........

Thanks for looking

j.