White-collared kite  (Leptodon forbesi)

Classified as Critically Endangered (CR) on the IUCN Red List (1) and listed on Appendix II of CITES (4).

Only recently confirmed as a distinct species, the white-collared kite has the unfortunate distinction of being one of the most endangered birds of prey in the world (2) (3) (5) (6). A large kite, it is blackish above and white below, with a white leading edge to the wing and white underwing-coverts. There may also be white spotting on the mantle and white tips to the secondaries (2) (3) (5) (7) (8), although these last two features have been difficult to confirm in wild specimens (9). The head is white to greyish with, as the name suggests, a white collar around the neck (2) (3) (7) (8), and the tail may have one or two dark bands (9). The wings of the white-collared kite are quite broad and blunt, the tail is relatively long and rounded, and the head is small, with a slender beak (7).

The white-collared kite was previously considered a possible variant of the closely-related grey-headed kite, Leptodon cayanensis (2) (5) (7) (10). However, it can be distinguished from the adult grey-headed kite by the white collar, white rather than black leading edge to the wings, white underwing-coverts, whiter forehead, and different tail pattern (2) (3) (5) (7) (8). Light-morph juvenile grey-headed kites are browner above than the white-collared kite, have a black crown, and have black-tipped feathers on the upperparts (3).

The white-collared kite is known from just a handful of sites in the states of Pernambuco and Alagoas in north-eastern Brazil (2) (3) (5) (7) (10), and has also recently been recorded further south, in the state of Sergipe (9).

This species inhabits Atlantic coastal forest, at elevations up to about 600 metres (2) (3) (5) (7) (8) (10).

Very little is known about the biology and life history of the white-collared kite (2) (3) (5) (8). However, it is likely to be similar to the grey-headed kite (5) (8), which feeds on a variety of insects as well as eggs, young birds, frogs, lizards, snakes and molluscs (7). The grey-headed kite builds a thin platform nest of sticks and twigs, high in the forest canopy, and lays a clutch of two to three eggs (7). Pairs of white-collared kites have been observed engaging in aerial displays, including ‘mutual soaring’, in which one individual follows the path of the other. Individuals or pairs may also perform a ‘butterfly display’, in which the wings are held at a steep angle above the horizontal, and the bird makes stiff, fast wing flaps (11) (12). The calls of this species include a rapid series of short, high kua-kua-kua-kua notes, as well as a nasal call which somewhat resembles that of a peacock (3) (11).

With a total population so far estimated at perhaps fewer than 100 mature individuals, and a highly restricted and fragmented range (3) (10), the white-collared kite may be the most endangered bird of prey in South America (6), and indeed is one of the rarest birds in the world (5). The Atlantic coastal forest of Brazil is highly threatened by habitat loss, mainly in the form of clearance for sugarcane and coffee plantations, and pressure from urbanisation (7) (8) (13). Within this species’ range, massive deforestation has drastically reduced forest cover to less than one percent of its former extent, and the small remaining forest fragments are under continued threat from logging, as well as from fires (3) (10). In addition, a lack of knowledge about the white-collared kite, whose very existence as a distinct species was still debated as recently as 2005, hinders efforts to conserve it (5) (6) (8). 

The white-collared kite is listed on Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), meaning that any international trade in the species should be carefully monitored (4). In addition, a large area of Murici, Alagoas, is legally protected, and organisations such as the Instituto para a Preservação da Mata Atlântica (IPMA) are working to create forest reserves on privately-owned land (3) (10). Further surveys and research into the white-collared kite are urgent priorities (3) (6) (10), and studies have been recommended to clarify its taxonomic status using genetic analysis (3). The designation of Murici as a biological reserve and the protection of other forest areas (3) (10) (13), such as Mata do Coimbra, Ibateguara, Alagoas (12), will also be important to its continued survival. Birds of prey make ideal, charismatic ‘flagship’ species for conservation (6), and so any efforts to conserve this highly endangered kite would also be likely to benefit many of the other threatened species that share its fragile habitat.

View information on this species at the UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre.

To find out more about the white-collared kite and its conservation see:

• Global Raptor Information Network:
  http://globalraptors.org/grin/SpeciesResults.asp?specID=8050
• Neotropical Birds Online:
  http://neotropical.birds.cornell.edu/portal/species/overview?p_p_spp=119516
• Aves de Rapina do Brasil (in Portuguese):
  http://www.avesderapinabrasil.com/leptodon_forbesi.htm

For more information on conservation in the Atlantic Forest of Brazil see:

• Conservation International: Biodiversity Hotspots - Atlantic Forest:
  http://www.biodiversityhotspots.org/xp/hotspots/atlantic_forest/Pages/default.aspx

For more information on this and other bird species please see:

• BirdLife International:
  http://www.birdlife.org