White-tailed Kite (Elanus leucurus) is found in the New World in both North and South America. Although this species used to be found in Florida, it seems to have been exterminated there and is probably still found only in Texas and California in the United States. This species is also found as far south as Chile and Argentina. This Kite is pale gray above and lighter below, with a long white tail. It is about fifteen to seventeen inches long.

In the drawing in Restall's "Birds of Northern South America" he shows an immature of similar coloring to the adult. However, the immature has some pale marks on the dorsal wing tips, and the immature shows a tail with of an off white color. The immature also has some brown markings on the back of the head.

In the Restall distribution map for the northern mainland, the distribution if very spotty, and thus this is not found everywhere.

In the Christmas Bird Counts this New World form is referred to as Elanus caeruleus. The Christmas bird counts indicate that this species was almost exterminated in the United States in about 1925. However, by a strong educational program, this species has made somewhat of a comeback.

There are two subspecies. The subspecies majusculus is found in western and southern North America south through most of Central America. The subspecies leucurus is from southern Panama to Argentina and Chile.

The following species are in the genus Elanus:

Elanus caeruleus - Black Shoulder Kite - Eurasia & Africa
Elanus leucurus - White Tailed Kite - - N & S America
Elanus notatus - Australian Black Shoulder - Australia
Elanus scriptus - Letter Winged Kite - Australian Region

The kites are divided into several subfamilies including the Elaninae, Perninae, and the Milvinae. Included here is the Eurasian Lammergeyer with a wingspan of about 9 feet. Also included here is the swallowtail kite found from the southern United States to Argentina. Several groups are listed:
Elaninae - white tail kites - about 7 species
Perninae - swallowtail and hook bill kites
Milvinae - true kites

Hawks and Eagles (Family Accipitridae) are a group of 205 species found in most areas of the world. Actually, the common terms of eagle, hawk, kite, buzzard, and vulture are rather loosely used, and consequently, are not much help in understanding this family. Here, this family has been separated into seven groups: typical hawks, Old World vultures, eagles and related hawks, fish eagles, kites, harriers and marsh hawks, and a misc. group. A more precise division might be:
Aegypinae - Old World Vultures -
Elaninae - White Tailed Kites - 7 species
Perninae - Swallowtailed and Hook Billed Kites
Milvinae - True kites -
Accipitrinae - Hunting hawks - 40 species
Buteoninae - Large hawks and eagles - 90 species
Circinae - Harriers and marsh hawks - 17 species
Circaetinae - Serpent eagles

There is no universal agreement on the division of this group, and some authors lump them altogether. We hope our arbitrary separation helps in the study of this group.

Birds of Prey (Order Falconiformes) group contains the eagles, hawks, falcons, Old World vultures, and related birds. The majority of the species in this group feed on small animals, fish, and other birds. A few species eat dead animals. Most of them are excellent fliers and have very strong legs and claws for grasping their prey. There are about 239 species in the hawk and eagle group and about 61 species in the falcon group. When you include the unique osprey and the unique secretary bird, you total about 302 species more or less depending upon a few controversial subspecies.

(The 7 species of New World vultures have recently been placed near the pelicans and storks and were not counted in our 302 number. However, for historical reasons we have left those vultures below here, as our purpose is defining species, and helping users navigate the large number of species.)

Aves contains about 8,650 different species of living birds known to science. Each year about one new species is discovered in some remote rain forest or remote island. In addition, scientists have been raising many subspecies to full species status which may raise the species count to 10,000. Birdlife recognizes 10,027 species as of 2011.

However, each year about one species goes extinct. The rate of extinction is increasing, and the rate of new discovery is decreasing, so that the number of bird species will soon begin to decline rapidly. Although different taxonomists would organize the birds differently, there are approximately twenty-seven orders of birds. These orders are broken down into about one hundred and fifty-five different families.

Recent research of the genetic structure of some of the shore birds and owls would indicate that the present organization of orders and families should have some modification.

The birds are a worldwide group of animals that are characterized by having the front limbs modified into wings that are used for flying. Perhaps the most unique feature of the birds is the feathers. These feathers are made up of a central support called a quill and a series of small filaments that are hooked together as barbs.

For many years it was believed that Archaeopteryx discovered in Bavaria was the oldest bird from about 150 million years ago. However, in l986, Sankar Chattterjee, a Texas paleontologist, reportedly discovered a bird in the genus Protoavis that lived about 225 million years ago.

When this project was begun in 1978, we used Austin & Singer for bird taxonomy. Since then, we have adopted many changes, but have kept some older concepts that are still found widely in the literature. Recently, we have used Clements and Howard & Moore. Very recently, we have used Monroe and Sibley for the higher taxonomy of the perching birds.

Backboned Animals (Phylum Chordata) are the most advanced group of animals on earth. These animals are characterized by having a spinal cord or backbone. Most members have a clearly defined brain that controls the organism through a spinal cord. Fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals are in this phylum.

Currently, some taxonomists believe that the fish should be divided into two groups (sharks and regular fishes) and that there are some other primitive groups in the phylum such as hagfish or lampreys.

Animal Kingdom contains numerous organisms that feed on other animals or plants. Included in the animal kingdom are the lower marine invertebrates such as sponges and corals, the jointed legged animals such as insects and spiders, and the backboned animals such as fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals.

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