Red kite – (Milvus milvus)

The red kite (Milvus milvus) is a medium-large bird of prey in the family Accipitridae, which also includes many other diurnal raptors such as eagles, buzzards, and harriers.

Two subspecies are recognised:

• M. m. milvus (Linnaeus, 1758) – Europe and northwest Africa to the Middle East
• M. m. fasciicauda Hartert, 1914 – Cape Verde Islands

The subspecies M. m. fasciicauda is almost certainly extinct.

The following figures (mostly estimates) have been collated from various sources. They cover most of the countries in which red kites are believed to have bred.

Country	Year	Pairs	Trend	Notes
Albania			Un­known	Bred 1906
Algeria		0	Un­known	Bred in the 19th century, now extinct
Austria	2000	0–2		Extinct 1950, recolonised 1970s; 10 pairs 1990
Belarus	1997	1	Un­known	Extinct 1950s, recolonised 1985; 10 pairs 1990
Belgium	c.1995	50–60		Declined to 1–3 pairs early 1970s, then recovery
Bosnia and Herzegovina		0	Un­known
Bulgaria		0	Un­known	May breed but no proof
Canary Islands		0		Extinct 1970s
Cape Verde	2000	1?		50–75 pairs late 1980s; effectively extinct
Croatia		0	Un­known	2–5 pairs 1980s
Czech Republic	2013	165-185		Extinct late 19th century, recolonised 1975
Denmark	2021	300-350[58]		Extinct c.1920, then recolonised (from Sweden) 1970s
England	2011	c.2000		Extinct 1870s, reintroduced 1989–1992, recovering
Estonia	1989	<1	Un­known
France	late 2000s	c.3000		2300–2900 pairs 1980s
Germany	late 2000s	c.12000		15000–25000 pairs 1980s
Greece		0	Un­known
Hungary	c.1998	1+		30 pairs 1950s
Ireland	2010	7		First successful breeding reported in 2010 following reintroduction in 2007
Italy	c.2002	300–400	Un­known	70–150 pairs late 1980s
Latvia	1992	0–50		Extinct 1964, then recolonised
Lithuania	1988	1–2		Extinct, then recolonised 1981
Luxembourg	2015	90
Moldova	1990	1	Un­known
Montenegro	1995	0	Un­known
Morocco	c.1992	10–100		In danger of extinction
Netherlands	c.1998	<5		Extinct 1852, recolonised 1976
Northern Ireland	2010	5		First successful breeding reported in 2010 following reintroduction in 2008
North Macedonia		0	Un­known
Norway	1980	0		Bred occasionally in the 19th century
Poland	c.1998	650–700		400–450 pairs 1980s
Portugal	c.1995	100–200	Un­known
Romania	1995	15–20	Un­known
Russia	1992	0–50	Un­known
Scotland	2009	135		Extinct 1886, reintroduced 1989–1992
Serbia			Un­known
Slovakia	1992	10–20	Un­known
Spain	late 2000s	c.2200		10,000 pairs 1977
Sweden	2020	1900-2200[59]		Increase from 400 pairs in 1993
Switzerland	2013-2016	2800-3500		Declined 19th century, later recovery; 235–300 pairs in the late 1980s, 800-1000 pairs in 1995.
Tunisia		0	Un­known	Bred in the 19th century, now extinct
Turkey		0	Un­known	May have bred in past but no proof
Ukraine	1990	5–8
Wales	2009	c.1000		Declined to 2 pairs in the 1930s, then recovery

Only few observation near the Danube Delta.

photo: Mihai BACIU