Vulture: The Private Life of an Unloved Bird

by Melissa Robell

I am a VISTA Intern with the Friends of Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge and I completed the winter 2019-20 TMN class with the RGV Chapter. One of my favorite sessions during the TMN Annual Meeting was “Vulture: The Private Life of an Unloved Bird” presented by Katie Fallon, author and speaker. 

Through this session I learned more about vultures than I have ever learned before. I agree with Katie, the vulture worldwide is seen as an ugly, disgusting species, but they are ultimately really fascinating. Worldwide, there are 23 species of vultures, with eight, unfortunately, being critically endangered. In North and South America, there are seven total species. In North America, the California Condor is critically endangered. I was able to see a wild California Condor when I went hiking at Pinnacles National Park in central California. If you haven’t had the opportunity to see one, I encourage you to visit this park. Bonus fun fact: North America used to have vultures larger than the California Condor, but they went extinct at the last ice age. 

Overall, vultures have many threats including poisoning, electrocution, and beliefs. One big issue they face is lead poisoning. Many hunters still use lead bullets causing vultures to get lead poisoning when feeding on the leftover carcass. In Africa, big game carcasses are often poisoned by poachers to avoid having vultures swarm and alert local law enforcement. Electrocution is a big problem, especially with power lines. As for beliefs, in Southern Africa people believe vultures have a second sight and if you smoke a part of them you could become clairvoyant. 

The most common vulture species in North America is the Turkey Vulture, of which there are five subspecies. Turkey vultures weigh about four pounds, have chicken-like feet, an excellent sense of smell, and can open their mouth very wide. One key fact about them is that their chicken-like feet are not good for grabbing or carrying anything. They also have serrations on their tongue like a saw blade and since they have a great sense of smell, they often are the first species to find a carcass. 

Overall, they are known as obligate scavengers, meaning their diet is primarily carrion (dead animals). They have strong stomach acid and gut flora to allow them to eat and neutralize dangerous pathogens. I was surprised to learn how smart they are. They are able to learn where dead animals frequently show up and are known for waiting in those specific areas. Another fun fact, you can’t put a metal leg band on a Turkey Vulture, because all the toxic waste they emit will erode the metal. 

Overall, I really enjoyed attending the Virtual TMN Annual Meeting and I encourage you all to look up cool species of vultures that can be found worldwide. There were many other species highlighted in this presentation that I was unable to touch upon with this article.