The moment we’ve been waiting for…Swallow-tailed Kites are heading back to the U.S.! Together with Orleans Audubon Society we have been monitoring Swallow-tailed Kite movements through GPS. The map below shows the latest locations of many of these GPS-tagged Kites in South America.
Five kites are enjoying the Cerrado and pasturelands in the State of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil and have not started north just yet. Peter’s Creek is also hanging tight on his activity range in Rondônia, Brazil.
Abita Flatwoods, Cinco, and Cypress are steadily heading north in central-western Brazil while Snuffbox Canal and Belle River are the farthest north of the GPS-tracked Kites in the State of Amazonas, Brazil.
We anticipate more good news as additional tagged Swallow-tailed Kites will return within cell networks to upload their tracking data while they were on the non-breeding grounds. Kites have a long way to go and a treacherous, open ocean crossing ahead. Let us hope they’re fit and healthy for the 5,000-mile migration.
We’ll be sharing more on Kite migration soon. You can hear about each bird’s background, funding, and collaboration teams here: https://www.arcinst.org/2025/08/02/2025-aerial-research-team-roster-meet-the-swallow-tailed-kites/
Remember to report your Swallow-tailed Kite sightings…coming soon!
This work would not be possible without our dedicated supporters and collaborators. For our current GPS-tracked Swallow-tailed Kites we thank:
American Bird Conservancy (ABC)
The Avian Reconditioning Center for Birds of Prey
Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program
Cellular Tracking Technologies CTT GSM-GPS transmitters
Florida Ornithological Society
Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge
Friends of the Lower Suwannee & Cedar Keys National Wildlife Refuges
Friends of the Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge
Lake Woodruff National Wildlife Refuge
Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge
McDaniel Charitable Foundation
Merrit Island Wildlife Association
Microwave Telemetry, Inc. Satellite transmitters
National Fish and Wildlife Foundation
Ornitela GSM-GPS transmitters
Palm Beach County Department of Environmental Resources Management
Palm Beach Zoo and Conservation Society
Parkside Elementary School, Collier Co. Florida
Sanibel-Captiva Audubon Society
So cool!! I will be on the look out for our returning birds up here in Alabama.
May they have a safe flight!