American Swallow-tailed Kite
American Swallow-tailed KiteAmerican Swallow-tailed KiteAmerican Swallow-tailed KiteAmerican Swallow-tailed Kite

American Swallow-tailed Kite

Elanoides forficatus

Silhouette: Shyamal · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
at Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park

In 3 days ~40% in a week ~60%

1,302 Verified sightings at Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park From 2019 to 2026
18,915 In all 64 parks
May Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the American Swallow-tailed Kite

The swallow-tailed kite (Elanoides forficatus) is a pernine raptor which breeds from the southeastern United States to eastern Peru and northern Argentina. It is the only species in the genus Elanoides. Most North and Central American breeders winter in South America where the species is resident year round.

The swallow-tailed kite was first described as the "swallow-tail hawk" and "accipiter cauda furcata" (forked-tail hawk) by the English naturalist Mark Catesby in 1731. It was given the binomial scientific name Falco forficatus by Carl Linnaeus in the 10th edition of Systema Naturae, published in 1758; he changed this to Falco furcatus in the 12th edition of 1766. The latter spelling was used widely during the 18th and 19th centuries, but the original spelling has precedence. The genus Elanoides was introduced by the French ornithologist Louis Pierre Vieillot in 1818. The name is from Ancient Greek elanos for "kite" and -oides for "resembling".

The species is 50 to 68 cm (20 to 27 in) in length, with a wingspan of approximately 1.12–1.36 m (3.7–4.5 ft). Male and female individuals appear similar. The body weight is 310–600 g (11–21... Wikipedia →

Sounds

Call0:11

Ecuador · 2026

© Daan van der Hoeven · XC1102094 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Flight call0:43

Brazil · 2021

© Felipe Arantes · XC636933 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Song0:04

Ecuador · 2020

© Nunes-de-Almeida · XC545454 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Brownsberg Nature Park 🇸🇷 Suriname
~70%
2 Chagres National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~40%
3 Emas National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~30%
4 Everglades National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~20%
5 Yasuní National Park 🇪🇨 Ecuador
~20%
6 Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve 🇪🇨 Ecuador
~20%
7 Big Cypress National Preserve 🇺🇸 United States
~20%
8 Piedras Blancas National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~20%
9 Darién National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~20%
10 Arenal Volcano National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~20%
11 San Lorenzo Protected Forest 🇵🇦 Panama
~10%
12 Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
13 Cusuco National Park 🇭🇳 Honduras
~10%
14 Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
15 Farallones de Cali National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
~10%
16 Los Quetzales National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
17 Tenorio Volcano National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
18 Sierra de la Macarena National Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
~10%
19 La Tigra National Park 🇭🇳 Honduras
~10%
20 Corcovado National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
21 Chirripó National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
22 Amacayacu National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
~10%
23 La Amistad International Park (Panama) 🇵🇦 Panama
~10%
24 Utría National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
~10%
25 Volcán Barú National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~10%
26 Chapada dos Guimarães National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~10%
27 Anavilhanas National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~10%
28 Manu National Park 🇵🇪 Peru
~10%
29 Cerro Azul Meámbar National Park 🇭🇳 Honduras
~10%
30 Poás Volcano National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
31 Podocarpus National Park 🇪🇨 Ecuador
~10%
32 Braulio Carrillo National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
33 Cahuita National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
34 Iguazú National Park 🇦🇷 Argentina
<5%
35 Iguaçu National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
36 Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary 🇧🇿 Belize
<5%
37 Lago de Yojoa 🇭🇳 Honduras
<5%
38 Irazú Volcano National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
39 Rincón de la Vieja National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
40 Parque Estadual Encontro das Águas 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
41 Machalilla National Park 🇪🇨 Ecuador
<5%
42 Tikal National Park 🇬🇹 Guatemala
<5%
43 Marino Ballena National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
44 Carara National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
45 El Impenetrable National Park 🇦🇷 Argentina
<5%
46 Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
47 Amboró National Park 🇧🇴 Bolivia
<5%
48 Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
49 Tortuguero National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
50 Tambopata National Reserve 🇵🇪 Peru
<5%
51 Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
<5%
52 Calakmul Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
<5%
53 Henri Pittier National Park 🇻🇪 Venezuela
<5%
54 Bastimentos Island National Marine Park 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
55 Soberanía National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
56 Itatiaia National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
57 Parque Natural Metropolitano 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
58 Tayrona National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
<5%
59 Manuel Antonio National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
60 Pico Bonito National Park 🇭🇳 Honduras
<5%
61 Las Baulas Marine National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
62 Chingaza National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
<5%
63 Celestún Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
<5%
64 Los Nevados National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Orlando 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
2 Santa Cruz de la Sierra 🇧🇴 Bolivia
<5%
3 Miami 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
4 Panama City 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
5 Havana 🇨🇺 Cuba
<5%
6 Curitiba 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
7 Houston 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
8 São Paulo 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
9 San José 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
10 Bogota 🇨🇴 Colombia
<5%

Closest Relatives at Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park

Red-tailed Hawk
LC

Red-tailed Hawk

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Buteo jamaicensis

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
Broad-winged Hawk
LC

Broad-winged Hawk

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Buteo platypterus

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
Common Black-Hawk
LC

Common Black-Hawk

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Buteogallus anthracinus

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
Short-tailed Hawk
LC

Short-tailed Hawk

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Buteo brachyurus

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
Ornate Hawk-Eagle
NT

Ornate Hawk-Eagle

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Spizaetus ornatus

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
Roadside Hawk
LC

Roadside Hawk

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Rupornis magnirostris

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
Barred Hawk
LC

Barred Hawk

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Leucopternis princeps

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
Gray-lined Hawk
LC

Gray-lined Hawk

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Buteo nitidus

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
Black Hawk-Eagle
LC

Black Hawk-Eagle

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Spizaetus tyrannus

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
Double-toothed Kite
LC

Double-toothed Kite

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Harpagus bidentatus

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
Gray-headed Kite
LC

Gray-headed Kite

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Leptodon cayanensis

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
Sharp-shinned Hawk
LC

Sharp-shinned Hawk

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Accipiter striatus

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing an American Swallow-tailed Kite in Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park?

With luck

About 10% of wildlife watchers report an American Swallow-tailed Kite sighting in Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park on a given day, based on 1,302 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 68th most-seen of the 467 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 40%, and over a week to about 60%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see an American Swallow-tailed Kite in Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park?

March and May–June

In those months about 30% of wildlife watchers report an American Swallow-tailed Kite in Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park on a given day, against under 5% in September to January, the lowest months.

What time of day is best to see an American Swallow-tailed Kite?

Between 9 am and noon

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most American Swallow-tailed Kite sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park the best place to see an American Swallow-tailed Kite?

12th of 64

Of the 64 parks where we can rate American Swallow-tailed Kite sightings, Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park ranks 12th at about 10%. The best odds are in Brownsberg Nature Park (Suriname, about 70%), Chagres National Park (Panama, about 40%) and Emas National Park (Brazil, about 30%). All parks ranked.

Which relatives of the American Swallow-tailed Kite live in Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park?

Same family: Accipitridae

The closest relatives of the American Swallow-tailed Kite that you can see in Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park (family Accipitridae, Hawks, Eagles, and Kites) are Red-tailed Hawk (about 10%), Broad-winged Hawk (about 10%) and Common Black-Hawk (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.

Where does the American Swallow-tailed Kite sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the American Swallow-tailed Kite is recorded against all the birds logged in Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park (1,302 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), 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.

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