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Plumbeous Kite Ictinia plumbea
Howell and Webb describe this species as a resident along the Caribbean slope and a migrant along the Pacific slope, where they say there are no verified winter records. However, Komar and Dominguez have this species as a confirmed breeder in El Salvador, where they are found in the coastal mangroves. I have only had one sighting in El Salvador, over fields near the Rio Jiboa in June 2005. I have seen this species twice on the pacific slope of Guatemala, at Iztapa in May and at Monterrico in February, which was presumably a wintering bird. Both of these birds were in mangroves. My May sighting at Iztapa suggests that they may also breed in the mangroves on the Pacific slope of Guatemala. I have also seen them on the Carribean slope at Cerro Cahui and at Tikal, where they are common around the ruins. They were nesting at Tikal when I visited in April. In Honduras I have only ever seen them at Las Marias, La Muralla and La Lima, all of which are both in the eastern part of the country.
Plumbeous Kite Tikal April 04 Plumbeous Kite Mosquitia Aug 05 Plumbeous Kite Mosquitia Aug 05 (1)