Brahminy Kite

A medium-sized raptor with a rounded tail unlike other kites. Adults are unmistakable with a white head and breast contrasting with otherwise brick brown plumage. Juveniles are a darker brownish-black with a paler head and prominent white patches under the wings. Usually associated with both inland and coastal wetlands in tropical Asia, but it is largely restricted to coastal wetlands in Australia where it is alternately known as “Red-backed Sea Eagle.” Call is a distinctive nasal, drawn out, “Kyeeerrh.”

In Sri Lanka, the Brahminy Kite is most commonly found along the coast, particularly in areas like estuaries, mangrove swamps, mudflats, and other wetland regions, where they primarily feed on dead fish and other aquatic prey; they can also be seen near inland wetlands and sometimes even in urban areas close to water bodies.

In Sri Lanka, the Brahminy Kite primarily feeds on a diet of dead fish, crabs, other small vertebrates, and carrion which it scavenges from coastal areas and wetlands, often snatching prey from the water surface while flying low over the water; it may also occasionally hunt live prey like small birds, insects, and small mammals depending on availability.