|
Turkey vultures, often
called buzzards, are found throughout much of the United States and Central and
South America. They can often be seen circling endlessly and effortlessly, and
are fairly easy to identify by their huge wingspans and striking heads.
"They're often mistaken
for eagles because of their huge 6-foot wingspan and flight patterns,"
explained Paul Wolterbeek, a volunteer program coordinator at the Boyce
Thompson Arboretum in Arizona, where as many as 300 of the birds have been
counted in late summer before their annual migration south.
Turkey vultures are much
different from eagles. Their bills and feet are not designed to catch or kill
prey, "so instead they feast on road kill and desert casualties," Wolterbeek
said.
These creatures are most
easily identified by their red heads, which are entirely
bald and free of feathers. This makes it safer to feast on totally gross
carrion—stuff doesn't stick. "The birds are designed to poke their bills
deep into a carcass," Wolterbeek said, "and smooth skin cleans a lot
more easily than would absorbent feathers."
The vultures typically wait
until the air warms up and creates rising thermal columns.
"The vultures find
those columns, and ride the updrafts hundreds of feet upwards," Wolterbeek
explained. "They've been known to cruise 30-50 miles away in search of
food." When one finds a good updraft, other turkey vultures will join it.
A group of turkey vultures is called a "kettle," Wolterbeek said,
because when several converge and circle together "they can resemble water
swirling in a pot."
It's a myth, Woterbeek said,
that vultures prefer things that have been dead for days. "The truth is
that they prefer their meals more fresh ... they'll definitely pass up carrion
that's too, well, 'ripe.'"
So how do vultures find
fresh road kill? It's not with eagle eyes. Surprisingly, though most birds lack
any sense of smell, vultures can sniff out a dead critter from more than a mile
away.
"They smell the unique
sulphurous chemical compounds of decaying meat from high in the sky, then will
circle around downwards until they find the aroma's origin," Woterbeek
said.
|
wanjek
secularhumanizinevoluter
JackronRM
About us
| Contact us
| Advertise
| Terms of service
| Privacy
| DMCA/Copyright