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Vultures are found on every continent except Australia and Antarctica. They are broadly subdivided into Old World (Europe, Asia and Africa) and New World Vultures (North and South America). There are three North American Vultures: California Condor, Turkey Vulture and Black Vulture. The California Condor (our largest with a 9.5 foot wing span) was on the path to extinction (about 27 pairs left in the wild) until a captive breeding program was introduced in the late 1980’s and they have been reintroduced with some success in the southwestern US. In our area we most commonly see the Turkey Vulture but the Black Vulture, more common in the southeast, has been steadily increasing its northern range.
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All of our vultures are scavengers, feasting on carrion and rarely taking live prey unless they are sick and/or injured. All of our vultures have featherless heads which allows them to burrow into the innards of carrion and still remain relatively clean and unmatted. Vultures also have extremely acidic stomach juices that aid their digestion and protect them from the numerous toxins encountered in decomposing flesh. One other unique characteristic is they urinate on their legs. This is thought to serve in thermo-regulation and also to kill the numerous bacteria they pick up as they wade through rotting flesh.[su_row][su_column size=”1/2″]
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[/su_column][/su_row]If you see a large hawk-like bird soaring over the campus with its wings held in a shallow-V (called a dihedral) you are looking at the Turkey Vulture. The body appears black at a distance and the dark coloration extends out onto the leading edge of the wings. The larger trailing area of the wings are a very contrasting light gray color. The head is reddish and can often be seen without binoculars. They are not the best of fliers and tend to teeter-totter in flight especially when windy. It is common to see them in groups riding the thermals soaring in a rising spiral pattern called a kettle. They also like to sit in groups in trees and roof tops. Such groupings are called a committee. The Turkey Vulture uses sight and its olfactory sense (unique for birds and other vultures) to locate carrion.[su_row][su_column size=”1/2″]
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[/su_column][/su_row]The Black Vulture is smaller and “chunkier” than the Turkey Vulture and the adults have a black and wrinkled bald head. Unlike the Turkey Vulture it soars with its wings relatively flat. It does not soar as well as the Turkey Vulture and will make several rapid flaps in between soars. Two other features to look for in flight are the white patches at the finger-like ends of their primary wing feathers and its very short squarish tail. It does not have an olfactory sense and often can be seen soaring above the Turkey Vultures depending upon them to find the next meal.
“Avian Life” is brought to you by Robert Koch, robert11388@gmail.com