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Any of numerous lightly built
They are found worldwide in warm regions. Some live on insects; others are primarily scavengers but also eat rodents and reptiles; a few eat only snails. In flight, kites slowly flap and then glide with wings angled back. Kites belong to three subfamilies of the family Accipitridae: Milvinae (true kites and snail kites), Elaninae (including the white-tailed kite, one of the few North American raptors increasing in number), and Perninae (including the swallow-tailed kite of the New World). See also hawk .
Swallow-tailed kite ( Elanoides forficatus ).
James A. Kern
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Light frame covered with paper or cloth, often provided with a balancing tail, and designed to be flown in the air at the end of a long string; it is held aloft by wind.
Its name comes from the kite , a member of the hawk family. Kites have been in use in Asia from time immemorial, and religious significance is still connected to some ceremonial kite-flying there. In a famous experiment in 1752, {{link=Franklin, Benjamin">Benjamin Franklin hung a metal key from a kite line during a storm to attract electricity. Kites were used to carry weather-recording devices aloft before the advent of balloons and airplanes. Types of kite commonly in use today include the hexagonal (or three-sticker), the malay (modified diamond), and the box kite, invented in the 1890s. Newer wing-like kites, with pairs of controlling strings for superior maneuverability, are also flown.