Kite nest removed to stop parents' aggressive behavior

  • Published
  • By Joe B. Wiles
  • 71st Flying Training Wing Public Affairs
VANCE AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. --  The large yellow truck with the long white arm reaching toward her nest was more than the mother kite was willing to challenge. 

She had been attacking people the past few days when they approached the tree at the corner of Channel Street and Phillips Avenue on Vance AFB. Her new hatchling was waiting there to be fed. 

Two men inside the white bucket on the long white arm planned to remove her nest, and her hatchling, from the tree. The mother kite would no longer need to attack folks walking past the Youth Center or the base exchange resale lot to protect her young. The baby kite would be in good hands. 

"The kite had attacked a lot of people and was getting dangerous," said Mark Buthman, Environmental Coordinator with the CSC Civil Engineer Department at Vance. "We knew something needed to be done so I contacted Julie Miller," he said. 

The Mississippi Kite is a federally protected raptor in the falcon family. Not just anyone could remove the nest. Ms. Miller is a state and federally licensed wildlife rehabilitation expert. She and her son, Spencer, came on base Thursday, July 3, to take the nest from the tree. 

The baby kite, the first taken from Vance this year, will be cared for at Ms. Miller's rehab facility near Breckinridge, just northeast of Enid. When it is old enough to live independently, Ms. Miller will release the kite. 

The Mississippi Kites are migratory birds, said Mr. Buthman. They winter in South America and will travel in groups of 20 to 30. "There are several established nests on base the birds return to every year," he said. 

Those nests are located around the Child Development Center, the Youth Center, Central National Bank, the fitness center and the northeast area of the park. The kites arrive in mid-April to early May. "Their aggressive behavior of defending the nest increases when babies hatch," said Ms. Miller. 

This probably won't be the last kite she will receive from Vance. "The fledglings take their first flight from the nest directly to the ground," she said. For the next two weeks they learn to fly in short hops. The parent kites will feed the baby and protect it on the ground. Once the babies learn to fly, the aggressive behavior of the parents ceases. 

"Sometimes the babies will break a leg on that first flight and that's when I take them in. I can fix that," said Ms. Miller. In the past she has taken in as many as 20 kites from Vance during a season. 

Operating as "Julie Miller, Wildlife Rehabber," she receives no state or federal funding to care for orphaned or injured wildlife in Garfield County. She got started at age 10 by volunteering at a veterinarian. "Now it is a passion," she said. 

Ms. Miller urges folks to stay away from baby birds on the ground. Parents aren't the only kites that will protect a fledgling. "Pick up a baby kite and you can be in for a real thumping," she said. 

Mr. Buthman recommends avoiding the nesting areas as much a possible in July and August. "Wearing a hat, waving your arms or carrying an umbrella can help prevent an attack," he said. 

For more information, contact Mr. Buthman at 213-7344.