Home › Volumes › Bird Homes › Part I. — Open Nests in Marshes, Reeds, Saw-grass, and Low Bushes in Open Country
Everglade Kite; Snail Hawk
Adult Male--Dark slate colour; upper tail coverts and beneath the tail white; tail tipped with white.
Adult Female and immature--Dark brown, feathers tipped with rusty colour, under parts somewhat mottled. Length--18.00.
Breeding Range--Southward from middle Florida.
Nest of coarse grass or saw-grass, either in tall rank grass or in low bushes among the saw-grass; "they measure about a foot in diameter, with a cavity three inches deep" (Davie). 2 to 3 eggs are laid; they are dusky white or brownish, with blotches and spots of dark reddish brown. Size--1.85 x 1.47.
The name Snail Hawk is well applied to these birds, as their food consists largely of a kind of snail that is to be found in shallow water.
The breeding season in Florida begins in March.