Some observations on the Black-shouldered kite

For birders living in the countryside, Black-shouldered kites are a fairly common sight. Often, they are seen roosting on electric lines or telephone lines. They have come so accustomed to roosting on these lines that it sometimes becomes frustrating for photographers to take photographs of them in a 'natural perch'. (This is mandatory for qualifying for photography contests)

They can often be mistaken for crows because of their apparent small size. I have seen Black shouldered kites roosting alongside crows and mynas. These birds don't seem bothered by each others presence. It also quite common to see them being mobbed by crows. We can only assume what transpired between them. Black-shouldered kite probably tried to steal eggs or chicks from a crows nest.

I once observed three Black-shouldered kites, while being mobbed by crows, were also engaged in some sort of a ritual. In mid flight, one of the Black-shouldered kites would flip over and present the talons to the other bird. The other black-shouldered kite would catch hold of the talons and would cart-wheel in the sky for some distance before breaking away and repeating this process. I had seen this kind of behaviour in sea eagles in "The Life of Birds" documentary by David Attenbrough. Sea eagles engage in such cartwheeling while fighting for territory.

I tried to look up several sources to find out if this behaviour was documented in Black-shouldered kites. However, there was no mention of this. In the book "Birds of prey" by Rishad Naoroji, there was a mention of this behaviour. It is apparently a courtship ritual that these birds perform. It is mentioned that the usually the female usually flips over and presents its talons to the male. I was unable to ascertain this as the sexes are indistinguishable in the field.

Another thing I have observed with Black-shouldered kites is their tail flicking behaviour. while roosting, they are sometimes observed to flick their tails up and down in a unique fashion. I don't know the reason for this behaviour. They are perhaps signalling. I however could not sight another black-shouldered kite in the proximity.

When they are roosting and they are about to take off, they almost always defecate. Infact, I believe most raptors defecate before take off. I have seen White-eyed buzzards do this.

I also have seen Black-shouldered kites being active very early in the morning to very late in the evening. (on June 24/06/16, I actually Black-shouldered kites hunting for prey at 7:00 PM in the evening. However, the date being very close to the summer solstice, enough light was available)

One observation shared by an ardent birder was that the presence of Black-shouldered kites in a location, is an indicator for habitat destruction. I don't know the basis of this belief or if this belief is true. It needs validation.