Red Kite

Milvus milvus

Order: Accipitriformes
Family: Accipitridae
Presence in the Strait: Seasonal
Abundance: scarce
Protection in Spain: In danger of extinction · Andalusian Catalogue
In Spanish: Milano real

Photograph: Hansueli Krapf, CC BY-SA, vía iNaturalist

Length: 60–66 cm
Wingspan: 145–165 cm
Weight: 1,000–1,150 g

Presence in the Strait

Scarce winter visitor to open areas (<10), a little more common during migration (<150 post. migr.).

Identification

Generally rufous appearance with long, deeply forked tail. In flight, prominent white underwing patches. Juveniles tails are less forked and underparts are more buff-brown.

Movements

Very prolonged migration with few birds crossing the Strait. Peaks in 2nd hf. March and 1st hf. October.

Ring recoveries

Germany (3). Accipitridae Abejero Europeo Milano Negro Milano Real

Bioestrecho editorial text. Last revised: 8 September 2026.

Photographs from iNaturalist observations with the licence checked file by file. Those marked “Strait” were taken within the area; place and date are those of each observation.

Calendar in the Strait

19 %

Peak in December. Observations under CC0 or CC BY licences. The distribution also reflects observation effort.

Where it is seen

Open records from the atlas database, in cells of about 3.6 km. Opacity follows the square root of the count, and also reflects where people observe most.

See on the map

First open record: 24 August 1963
Latest record: 7 January 2026

The oldest and the most recent open observation in the extended area. A recent first observation does not mean the species is new: it means nobody had published it openly before.

Conservation

The catalogues, Andalusian and Spanish, are what binds; the Red Book assesses the Spanish population with IUCN criteria, and the global Red List is the context.

LCNTVUENCR

Andalusian Catalogue: In danger of extinction
Spanish Catalogue: In danger of extinction
Red Book of the Birds of Spain 2021: EN · Endangered · breeding
Global Red List (IUCN): LC · Least concern

Plan: AVES NECRÓFAGAS · Annex I of the Birds Directive

Andalusian Catalogue: Junta de Andalucía, list of 24 April 2025. Spanish Catalogue: MITECO, table of 30 June 2025. Red Book: SEO/BirdLife, 2021 (Annex I). IUCN: via GBIF, 6 September 2026. Red Book and IUCN categories are assessments; catalogue categories are legal obligations.

Phenology compared

Monthly distribution in proportion, by decade. It shows whether the passage is getting earlier or later.

1990–1999

2000–2009

2010–2026

Proportions, not totals: observation effort grew faster than any population.

Where they come from

3 birds ringed in other countries and recovered in the area.

Germany3

See the journey on the map

Same genus in the Strait

Black Kite55–60 cm · Seasonal · overlapping size

Species of the same genus that also occur here, ordered by how close they are in size. Being relatives does not mean they are confused in the field, but that is where the doubts start: compare size and season.

Classification

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Accipitriformes
Family: Accipitridae
GBIF taxon key: 5229168

Sources

Distribution and calendar: Bioestrecho's own database, ingested from GBIF and OBIS
Photograph: Hansueli Krapf, CC BY-SA, vía iNaturalist
Taxonomy: GBIF backbone, pending WoRMS for marine taxa
Editorial text: written by Bioestrecho
Last revised: 8 September 2026

Red Kite

Presence in the Strait

Identification

Movements

Ring recoveries

Gallery