Hello, my name is Sophia and I’m a female Black Kite. I hatched on 8th May 2010. My Latin name is Milvus Migrans. Sam called me Sophia after Oprah Winfrey’s character in The Color Purple, I’m thankful I wasn’t called Harpo! As with other raptors, our ritualised aerial courtship display is performed by both sexes. This involves loud calling, grappling of feet (talons), and tumbling or cartwheeling. Our nest is a bulky cup of sticks, lined with softer material, and is placed in the fork of a tree branch. My tail is forked (I said forked) and is barred with darker shades of brown. This feature gives us our alternative name of Fork-tailed Kite. I come from the majority of the Australian mainland but I can also be found in Africa and Asia. In the wild, I’m to be found in a variety of habitats, from semi-deserts to forests, and from open plains to outback towns. Although I’m normally seen in small groups, we may well form huge flocks of many thousands of birds, especially during grasshopper plagues (ahhh grasshopper)!

Black Kites congregate in their thousands above bush fires and eagerly pounce on the small mammals, lizards and insects as they flee the flames.