"Indifference is the strongest force in the universe. It makes everything it touches meaningless. Love and hate don't stand a chance against it.”- Joan D. Vinge
Black kites are medium sized raptors.They have adapted well to urbanisation and are a common sight near marketplaces. Their ability to hunt and scavenge is the reason why they are the most abundant species of raptors in the world.
My earliest memories of this bird are from St. Vincent's High School days. Our school was next to Shivaji Market and it had a fair share of these birds. Reaching school late was a nightmare. It entitled not only the side locks or ears pulled by Father D'lima, a late remark in the calendar but also a deafening silence. This silence was broken by an eerie "keeeeee" call by this mighty bird. I can imagine now, how the German Stuka bomber planes must have been sounding during the second world war.
Another memory from those same days was eating lunch on the school stadium only to have it snatched from your hands before it reached the mouth. The sheer power of its wings as they slapped your face in the event is something one can never forget.
The epithet indicating the genus “milvus” comes from Latin for "kite", the term indicating the species “migrans” refers to "migration". The sub species name "govinda" meaning "Lord Krishna" was given by Colonel William Henry Sykes (1832) an English naturalist who served with the British Army in India describing several new species and naming many after Hindu deities.
However Black Kites have always been ostracized by the birding community that referred to it with the name "pariah kite" meaning lower caste in days gone by. Although the use of that name is now discontinued the indifference continues and one doesn't see many photos of this common bird as bird photographers tend to dismiss it saying - "Oh, it's just a black kite."
Black kite
Small Indian Kite
(Milvus migrans govinda)
Sony A77II
Tamron 150-600
f/6.3, 1/500s, ISO800, 600mm
Home,Kahun Road, Pune (India)
April 2020