Milvus milvus
Silhouette: Andy Wilson · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~50%
The red kite (Milvus milvus) is a bird of prey in the family Accipitridae, which also includes many other diurnal raptors such as eagles, buzzards, and harriers. The species currently breeds only in Europe, though it formerly also bred in West Asia and Northwest Africa. Historically, it was only resident in the milder parts of its range in Western Europe and Northwestern Africa, whereas all or most red kites in Northern mainland Europe wintered to the south and west, some also reaching western Asia, but an increasing number of northern birds now remain in that region year-round. Vagrants have reached north to Finland and south to Israel, Libya and the Gambia.
The English word "kite" is from the Old English cyta which is of unknown origin. A kite is mentioned by Geoffrey Chaucer in his Knight's Tale. The early 15th century Hengwrt manuscript contains the lines: "Ther cam a kyte, whil þt they were so wrothe That bar awey the boon bitwix hem bothe." The first recorded use of the word kite for the human-operated aerial device dates from the 17th century.
The red kite was described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in the 10th edition of his Systema... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sierra de Guadarrama National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 2 | Pyrénées National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 3 | Monfragüe National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 4 | Ordesa y Monte Perdido National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 5 | Doñana National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 6 | Cévennes National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 7 | Snowdonia National Park | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 8 | Aigüestortes National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 9 | Cairngorms National Park | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 10 | Fertő-Hanság National Park | 🇭🇺 Hungary | |
| 11 | Camargue | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 12 | Biebrza National Park | 🇵🇱 Poland | |
| 13 | Bavarian Forest National Park | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 14 | Kiskunság National Park | 🇭🇺 Hungary | |
| 15 | Wadden Sea National Park | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 16 | Picos de Europa National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Red Kite sighting in London on a given day, based on 3,175 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 67th most-seen of the 203 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.
Any time of year
In every month with enough records, about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Red Kite in London on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Red Kite sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
3rd of 15
Of the 15 cities where we can rate Red Kite sightings, London ranks 3rd at about 10%. The best odds are in Leeds (United Kingdom, about 20%) and Madrid (Spain, about 20%).
Same family: Accipitridae
The closest relatives of the Red Kite that you can see in London (family Accipitridae, Hawks, Eagles, and Kites) are Eurasian Sparrowhawk (about 10%) and Common Buzzard (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Red Kite is recorded against all the birds logged in London (3,175 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
