CreatureData

Snail kite

Rostrhamus sociabilis (Vieillot, 1817)

LCLeast Concernbirds of prey

The snail kite (Rostrhamus sociabilis) is a species in the family Accipitridae, order Accipitriformes. Recorded adults weigh 351.5 g to 446 g and live up to 17 years. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.

Snail kite (Rostrhamus sociabilis)
Photo: Giles Laurent · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Quick facts about the snail kite

Weight
351.5 g – 446 gsrc for Weight
Length
Not recorded
Wingspan
99 cm – 1.15 msrc for Wingspan
Lifespan
17 yearssrc for Lifespan
Diet
Aquatic predatorsrc for Diet
Main food
pomaceasrc for Main food
Habitat
wetlandsrc for Habitat
Egg incubation
30 dayssrc for Egg incubation
Young per litter or clutch
2.4 – 3src for Young per litter or clutch
Age at maturity
12 months – 21.6 monthssrc for Age at maturity
Litters or clutches a year
1.5src for Litters or clutches a year
Lifestyle
Perchingsrc for Lifestyle
Migration
Partialsrc for Migration
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
Countries on record
Not recorded

How big is the snail kite?

SNAIL KITE · WINGSPAN 1.15 MADULT HUMAN · HEIGHT 1.7 M
At 1.15 m, the recorded maximum wingspan of the snail kite is about 68% of the height of an adult human (1.7 m, a fixed reference used for scale).

Where does the snail kite live?

Not recorded

What is the snail kite?

Quoted from WikipediaCC BY-SA 4.0

The snail kite (Rostrhamus sociabilis) is a bird of prey within the family Accipitridae, which also includes the eagles, hawks, and Old World vultures. Its relative, the slender-billed kite, is now again placed in Helicolestes, making the genus Rostrhamus monotypic. Usually, it is placed in the Milvine kites, but the validity of that grouping is under investigation.

From the Wikipedia article “Snail kite” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Snail_kite&oldid=1379927191), 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.

What does the snail kite sound like?

Niels Krabbe · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Is the snail kite endangered?

The snail 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 snail kite classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumChordata
  3. classAves
  4. orderAccipitriformes
  5. familyAccipitridae
  6. genusRostrhamus
  7. SpeciesRostrhamus sociabilis (Vieillot, 1817)

Synonyms Herpetotheres sociabilis, Rosthramus sociabilis, Rostrhamus niger

Other names and names in other languages (50)
  • حدأة الحلزونArabic
  • Охлювоядна каняBulgarian
  • caragoler comúCatalan
  • luněc bažinnýCzech
  • plžojed bažinnýCzech
  • barcud malwodWelsh
  • SnegleglenteDanish
  • SchneckenweihGerman
  • SchneckenbussardGerman
  • SchneckenweiheGerman
  • HelikomilvoEsperanto
  • helika milvoEsperanto
  • CaracoleroSpanish
  • Caracolero comúnSpanish
  • Gavilán caracoleroSpanish
  • TeohaugasEstonian
  • teohaugas (soo-teohaugas)Estonian
  • kotilohaukkaFinnish
  • Buse des maraisFrench
  • Milan des maraisFrench
  • Pagannigcr
  • Taguato jatytaGuarani
  • דיית החלזונותHebrew
  • szalagos csigászkányaHungarian
  • nibbio americanoItalian
  • Nibbio chioccioliereItalian
  • Nibbio delle EvergladesItalian
  • タニシトビJapanese
  • タンニシトビJapanese
  • 달팽이솔개Korean
  • bendruomeninis liaunasnapis peslysLithuanian
  • gliemežu klījaLatvian
  • Chʼiltaalkʼę́hé binááʼ łichíʼígííNavajo
  • SlakkewouwDutch
  • SlakkenwouwDutch
  • ślimakojad czerwonookiPolish
  • caracoleiro-comumPortuguese
  • gavião-caramujeiroPortuguese
  • Uliul moluștelorRomanian
  • Коршун-слизнеедRussian
  • Общественный коршун-слизнеедRussian
  • hákozobec družnýSlovak
  • Lunja pužaricaSerbian
  • snäckgladaSwedish
  • นกเหยี่ยวกินหอยทากThai
  • Salyangoz ÇaylağıTurkish
  • шуліка-слимакоїд червоноокийUkrainian
  • Diều ăn sênVietnamese
  • 螺鳶Chinese
  • 食螺鸢Chinese

Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistTAXREFWikidataWoRMSIUCN Red List

Relatives of the snail kite

Other species in the same family Accipitridae.

LC, Least Concern
Black kite (Milvus migrans)

Black kite

Milvus migrans

Accipitridae

CompareSnail kite vs Golden eagleSnail kite vs Eurasian sparrowhawkSnail kite vs Eurasian goshawkSnail kite vs Black kite

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

How big is the snail kite?

An adult snail kite weighs 351.5 g – 446 g and has a wingspan of 99 cm – 1.15 m, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

Is the snail kite endangered?

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

What does the snail kite eat?

Its recorded main food is pomacea.

How long does the snail kite live?

The snail kite has a recorded lifespan of 17 years.

What kind of animal is the snail kite?

The snail kite (Rostrhamus sociabilis) 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). Snail kite (Rostrhamus sociabilis). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/snail-kite

MLA

“Snail kite (Rostrhamus sociabilis).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/snail-kite.

BibTeX
@misc{snail_kite_2026,
  title = {Snail kite (Rostrhamus sociabilis)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/snail-kite},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}