CreatureData

Gray-headed kite

Leptodon cayanensis (Latham, 1790)

LCLeast Concernbirds of prey

The gray-headed kite (Leptodon cayanensis) is a species in the family Accipitridae, order Accipitriformes. Recorded adults weigh 261 g to 474 g. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.

Gray-headed kite (Leptodon cayanensis)
Photo: Hector Bottai · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Quick facts about the gray-headed kite

Weight
261 g – 474 gsrc for Weight
Length
Not recorded
Wingspan
90 cm – 1.1 msrc for Wingspan
Lifespan
Not recorded
Diet
Omnivoresrc for Diet
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
forestsrc for Habitat
Young per litter or clutch
2.5src for Young per litter or clutch
Lifestyle
Perchingsrc for Lifestyle
Migration
Sedentarysrc for Migration
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
Countries on record
Not recorded

How big is the gray-headed kite?

GRAY-HEADED KITE · WINGSPAN 1.1 MADULT HUMAN · HEIGHT 1.7 M
At 1.1 m, the recorded maximum wingspan of the gray-headed kite is about 65% of the height of an adult human (1.7 m, a fixed reference used for scale).

Where does the gray-headed kite live?

Not recorded

What is the gray-headed kite?

Quoted from WikipediaCC BY-SA 4.0

The gray-headed kite (Leptodon cayanensis) is a raptor found in open woodland and swamp forests. It shares the genus Leptodon with the extremely rare white-collared kite. It breeds from eastern Mexico and Trinidad south to Peru, Bolivia, Brazil and northern Argentina.

From the Wikipedia article “Gray-headed kite” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gray-headed_kite&oldid=1379919797), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.

Is the gray-headed kite endangered?

The gray-headed kite is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.

  1. LCLeast Concern
  2. NTNear Threatened
  3. VUVulnerable
  4. ENEndangered
  5. CRCritically Endangered
  6. EWExtinct in the Wild
  7. EXExtinct

Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species.

How is the gray-headed kite classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumChordata
  3. classAves
  4. orderAccipitriformes
  5. familyAccipitridae
  6. genusLeptodon
  7. SpeciesLeptodon cayanensis (Latham, 1790)

Synonyms Falco cayanensis, Falco cayennensis, Falco palliatus, Micraetus holmbergianus, Odontriorchis palliatus, Odontriorchis palliatus guianensis, Odontriorchis palliatus mexicanus

Other names and names in other languages (41)
  • Grey-headed kiteEnglish
  • Grey-headed kiteEnglish
  • حدأة رمادي الرأسArabic
  • milà capgrísCatalan
  • leptodon šedohlavýCzech
  • luňákovec šedohlavýCzech
  • barcud penllwydWelsh
  • Gråhovedet BazavågeDanish
  • CayenneweihGerman
  • Cayenne-WeiheGerman
  • grizkapa milvoEsperanto
  • Milano cabecigrísSpanish
  • Gavilán cabeza grisSpanish
  • Milano cabeza grisSpanish
  • valjashaugasEstonian
  • jokihaukkaFinnish
  • Milan de CayenneFrench
  • Bec-en-croc de CayenneFrench
  • Leptodon de CayenneFrench
  • Taguato morotîGuarani
  • szürkefejű darázskányaHungarian
  • Nibbio testagrigiaItalian
  • ハイガシラトビJapanese
  • 회색머리솔개Korean
  • pilkagalvis peslysLithuanian
  • GrijskopwouwDutch
  • gråhodeglenteNorwegian
  • leptodon szarogłowyPolish
  • gavião-gato-comumPortuguese
  • Gavião-de-cabeça-cinzaPortuguese
  • gavião-gatoPortuguese
  • milhafre-de-cabeça-cinzentaPortuguese
  • Кайеннский коршунRussian
  • Сероголовый кайенский коршунRussian
  • luň menlivýSlovak
  • Sivoglava lunjaSerbian
  • gråhuvad gladaSwedish
  • Gri Başlı ÇaylakTurkish
  • шуляк каєнськийUkrainian
  • 灰頭鳶Chinese
  • 灰头美洲鸢Chinese

Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistTAXREFWikidataIUCN Red List

Relatives of the gray-headed kite

Other species in the same genus Leptodon.

CompareGray-headed kite vs White-collared kite

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

How big is the gray-headed kite?

An adult gray-headed kite weighs 261 g – 474 g and has a wingspan of 90 cm – 1.1 m, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

Is the gray-headed kite endangered?

The gray-headed kite is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.

What kind of animal is the gray-headed kite?

The gray-headed kite (Leptodon cayanensis) belongs to the family Accipitridae in the order Accipitriformes.

Sources and how to cite this page

Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.

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APA

CreatureData. (2026). Gray-headed kite (Leptodon cayanensis). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/gray-headed-kite

MLA

“Gray-headed kite (Leptodon cayanensis).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/gray-headed-kite.

BibTeX
@misc{gray_headed_kite_2026,
  title = {Gray-headed kite (Leptodon cayanensis)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/gray-headed-kite},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}