Avian Research and Conservation Institute (ARCI) along with Orleans Audubon Society (OAS) are tracking Swallow-tailed Kites fitted with GPS-trackers on their Southeastern U.S. breeding grounds.
Luckey Lox, from Palm Beach County, Florida, departed the Yucatán on 2 March on course for Cuba and hit strong winds that she slowly pushed north in for 26 hours. Sanibel Botanical, from Lee County, Florida, left the Yucatán straight north across the Gulf of Mexico a day later and by 01:00 on 4 March they were on a parallel course on an amazing tailwind to the U.S. Gulf shoreline.
Sanibel Botanical arrived two hours prior to Luckey Lox and 150 miles west near Biloxi, Mississippi.
Luckey Lox is taking a break on the Wacissa Conservation Area in the Florida Panhandle, but Sanibel Botanical is on the fast track to arrive on Sanibel Island today, 7 March 2025.
Crossing the Gulf of Mexico to return to nesting grounds is the most treacherous part of a Swallow-tailed Kite’s migration. We currently have two additional GPS-tracked kites over the Gulf. There have been a series of strong fronts and severe weather pushing deadly tailwinds across the Gulf. We consider Sanibel Botanical and Luckey Lox, just that – Lucky. Good winds for migration today, so expect more and more of our feathered friends to arrive!
Report your sightings, especially any nesting activity : https://www.arcinst.org/report-sightings/
ARCI and OAS are tracking Swallow-tailed Kites not only to monitor the roosts, foraging areas, stopover sites, and winter destinations, but also to see how they use public and private lands and survive throughout the Southeastern States. We are grateful to our funders and project partners for making this research possible.
American Bird Conservancy (ABC)
National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF)
Palm Beach Zoo & Conservation Society
Palm Beach County’s Department of Environmental Resources Management (ERM)
Friends of the Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge Complex
Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge
Friends of Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge
McDaniel Charitable Foundation
Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program
CTT GSM-GPS transmitters
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