Vulture

This article is about the type of bird. For other uses, see Vulture (disambiguation).

Vulture
Temporal range: Miocene – Recent
↓
[1]
Rüppell's vulture
Rüppell's vulture
Scientific classificationEdit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Ornithurae
Class: Aves
Families

A vulture is a bird of prey that scavenges on carrion. There are 23 extant species of vulture (including condors).[2] Old World vultures include 16 living species native to Europe, Africa, and Asia; New World vultures are restricted to North and South America and consist of seven identified species, all belonging to the Cathartidae family.[2][3] A particular characteristic of many vultures is a bald, unfeathered head. This bare skin is thought to keep the head clean when feeding, and also plays an important role in thermoregulation.[4]

Vultures have been observed to hunch their bodies and tuck in their heads in the cold, and open their wings and stretch their necks in the heat. They also urinate on themselves as a means of cooling their bodies.[5]

A group of vultures in flight is called a 'kettle', while the term 'committee' refers to a group of vultures resting on the ground or in trees. A group of vultures that are feeding is termed a 'wake'.[6]

  1. ^ "Fossilworks:Aegypiinae". Fossilworks. Retrieved 17 December 2021.
  2. ^ a b "Dropping dead: causes and consequences of vulture population declines worldwide" (PDF). 2001.
  3. ^ Amadon, D. (1977). "Notes on the taxonomy of vultures" (PDF). The Condor. 79 (4): 413–416. doi:10.2307/1367720. JSTOR 1367720.
  4. ^ Ward, J.; McCafferty, D.J.; Houston, D.C. & Ruxton, G.D. (2008). "Why do vultures have bald heads? The role of postural adjustment and bare skin areas in thermoregulation". Journal of Thermal Biology. 33 (3): 168–173. Bibcode:2008JTBio..33..168W. doi:10.1016/j.jtherbio.2008.01.002.
  5. ^ Arad, Z. & Bernstein, M. H. (1988). "Temperature Regulation in Turkey Vultures". The Condor. 90 (4): 913–919. doi:10.2307/1368848. JSTOR 1368848.
  6. ^ Hamilton, S.L. (2014). "Sky Burials". In Galván, J. (ed.). They Do What? A Cultural Encyclopedia of Extraordinary and Exotic Customs from around the World. Santa Barbara, California: ABC-CLIO. p. 289. ISBN 978-1-61069-342-4.