Tracking “Suwannee”, the Swallow-tailed Kite

Suwannee left the Refuge in early August to begin his migration. He is now in the Yucatan.

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Debbie Jordan, here. I am a member of the Friends Board of Directors. I am shepherding Friends' Swallow-tailed Kite Project. In the spring of this year, Friends provided funding to tag one Swallow-tailed Kite that was summering on the Refuge so it could be tracked during its migration to Brazil and back. Here is the background. Now, I have an update.

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Left to right: Grace Campbell (ARCI, volunteer), Ken Meyer (ARCI), Larry Woodward (Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge, and Jeff Gleason (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service). Photo from ARCI website.

It’s a boy!  I was excited to hear the news from researcher Gina Kent when she got the results of the breast-feather DNA lab test determining the sex of “our” swallow-tailed kite. I have to say, I was secretly hoping for a girl but am glad he is healthy, and hopefully ready for the trip to South America (and back to the refuge next spring)!

Here is a link to a story about the tagging of our Kite, in case you missed it earlier on our website, http://www.swallow-tailedkites.org/2019/08/the-swallow-tailed-kite-class-of-2019.html. Gina and the team from  Gainesville’s Avian Research and Conservation Institute (ARCI) tagged “Suwannee” with a GPS tracking device last May, with major support by the Friends of LSNWR and funding by a grant from the National Audubon Society. The ARCI Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/ARCInst/) updates the information on the birds' locations weekly.

Photo by Nan Soistman of Sunrise Wildlife Rehabilitation

The state-of-the-art GSM transmitter works off cell-phone towers along his journey, downloading data several times a day as the bird passes within range.  If no towers are present, the data is stored and then retrieved when signal becomes available. Suwannee is one of 16 birds being monitored as they migrate to their wintering grounds in Brazil and Bolivia. After spending the summer months around the refuge and agricultural fields around Chiefland, Suwannee headed south the first week of August.

Stay tuned to the website for updates on his progress, as he makes his way to South America!  We wish Suwannee and the other 15 birds of the Class of 2019 a safe migration with plenty to eat. Habitat loss along the flyways is a huge threat for migrating birds. 

Articles about kite research are anticipated this fall in the Audubon magazine and other publications.  We will keep you posted as more info becomes available.

Photo by Nan Soistman of Sunrise Wildlife Rehabilitation

Photo by Nan Soistman of Sunrise Wildlife Rehabilitation