Vulture

I

Introduction

Vulture, common name for two groups of large carrion-eating birds found in distinct regions of the world. New World vultures, also called American or neotropical vultures, live in parts of North, Central, and South America as well as in the West Indies. Old World vultures, also called Eurasian and African vultures, inhabit parts of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Scientists continue to debate how the two groups of vultures (New World and Old World) are related to each other. Vultures do not occur in Australia, the Pacific Islands, or Antarctica.

Vultures play an important role in ecosystems by helping to remove carcasses of animals, which prevents the spread of disease and returns nutrients to the food chain. Some species of vultures in Asia are threatened with extinction from consuming remains of livestock treated with toxic drugs, however.

II

General Characteristics of Vultures

All vultures are large birds that typically have a naked head and hooked bill. A naked head and a naked neck allow vultures to feed deep in a carcass without matting feathers with blood or flesh. Vultures also have long, broad wings designed for soaring on rising currents of air called thermals. Most hunt by sight, staying high in the air for hours and watching for bodies of animals that have died or have been killed by predators. They also follow other vultures descending to feed. A few of the New World vultures have a well-developed sense of smell to detect decaying flesh.

Vultures feed almost entirely on carrion, although they occasionally attack newborn or wounded living animals. Particular species of vultures may prefer different parts of a carcass. Some types of vultures have powerful beaks that are specialized for tearing open the tough hide of large mammals; these vultures are usually allowed to feed first when different types of vultures gather at a dead animal. Many vultures have a large throat pouch called a crop to store food or to bring it to their young. Large vultures often gorge when they find meals and are able to go without eating for up to two weeks.

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A number of vultures have unusual food habits. Egyptian vultures break open ostrich eggs by hurling or dropping stones until the shells crack, a rare example of tool use by a bird. Lammergeiers drop bones onto rocks from high in the air to get at the marrow inside. The palm-nut vulture found in Africa mainly eats palm nuts, and sometimes invertebrates.

III

New World Vultures

The New World or American vultures differ from the Old World group found in Europe, Asia, and Africa in a number of ways. The nostrils of New World vultures have an elongated horizontal shape and are perforated without a partition. New World vultures also do not have a syrinx—the voice box in birds—and so cannot make vocal sounds, although they can hiss and grunt. Their feet are flatter and not well designed for grasping. They also exhibit some behaviors more like those of storks, such as defecating on their legs to cool off. New World vultures do not build nests; they lay their eggs in depressions on elevated rocky surfaces or on trees.

The turkey vulture is found from South America north to southern Canada. It shares much of this range (north to Pennsylvania) with the American black vulture, whose naked head is black rather than red. The term buzzard is used in North America for both types of vultures. (In British usage, buzzard refers to certain soaring hawks.) The king vulture found in Central and South America is larger and more powerful, with a strong beak that can tear through tough hides on carcasses. The largest North American vulture is the California condor. The Andean condor found in South America is one of largest of all flying birds, with a wingspread of up to 3.2 m (10.5 ft).

IV

Old World Vultures

Old World vultures share many characteristics with their close relatives hawks and eagles. They have large grasping feet with large talons and build stick platform nests. They also have a syrinx, unlike New World vultures, and can produce a few sounds.

The largest Old World vultures include the Himalayan vulture, which has a wingspan of more than 3 m (10 ft) and a weight of 12.5 kg (26 lb). The lappet-faced vulture found in Africa has a powerful beak and is able to tear open tough hides, similar to the king vulture in the Americas. Different species of vultures that form mixed flocks at lion kills in Africa respect a definite hierarchy, with smaller species, such as the Egyptian vulture, having to wait until the more powerful species, such as Rüpell’s griffon, are finished.

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