Elanus
| Elanus | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Black-shouldered kite, Elanus axillaris | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Accipitriformes |
| Family: | Accipitridae |
| Genus: | Elanus Savigny, 1809 |
| species | |
|
E. caeruleus | |
Elanus is a genus of bird of prey in the elanid kite subfamily. It consists of four species.
- Black-winged kite, Elanus caeruleus
- Black-shouldered kite, Elanus axillaris
- White-tailed kite, Elanus leucurus
- Letter-winged kite, Elanus scriptus
The first three species above were considered conspecific as subspecies of Elanus caeruleus, which has been known as the black-shouldered kite.
These are white and grey raptors of open country, with black wing markings and a short square tail. They hunt by slowly quartering the habitat for rodents and other small mammals, birds and insects, sometimes hovering like a kestrel.
References
- Ferguson-Lees, Christie, Franklin, Mead and Burton Raptors of the World ISBN 0-7136-8026-1