A white-tailed kite (Elanus leucurus) perches on some dead mistletoe at the apex of an old valley oak. This is a secure perch for dismembering a newly-caught warm vole -- secure from ambush or surprise, a good place for a quiet breakfast. I call this tree the "Phainopepla Tree", after an encounter here years ago, when the mistletoe was still fecund. An old valley oak (Quercus lobata) filled with old oak mistletoe (Phoradendron serotinum ssp. tomentosum). From Road F at dawn, 7:12 am.