Vultures

[nan]

Kruger - White-backed Vultures and White-headed Vulture

29.10.2009

28.10.2009

[Lisbeth]

What an ugly head!

[Pumbaa]

Thanks so much everybody for the amazing pictures

[Toko]

Thank you, Duke, Peter and nan - some great captures

[Duke]

So what do we have here at Cubitje Quap, KTP.

Lappet Faced, Cape and what I make a Cape

[Lisbeth]

Beware, it will never be my preferred bird even if essential to the ecosystem

[Duke]

Reference: The Killer Birds of Kruger by Brett Hilton-Barber and Lou Arthur.

The White Backed Vulture soars at great heights and depend on other vultures and Bateleur Eagles to lead them to a kill. At the kill they can drive other vultures from the kill by sheer numbers. They prefer the soft flesh and intestines and also bone fragments.



The Lappet –faced Vulture is threatened and there are only 49 breeding pairs in KNP – one of the big 6 birds. This is our largest Raptor with a formidable beak that can tear apart the skin of the carcass. They tend to feed on the skin, tendons and ligaments which other vultures cannot process. They are often the last to arrive at a kill but quickly assert their dominance.



In contrast the Hooded Vultures use their delicate bills to probe for small pieces of meat left on the carcass after the other vultures have had their fill.



The White Headed Vulture is a rare sighting in Kruger. Often arrives first at a carcass but cannot compete with larger vultures when they arrive.
There are only 500 breeding pairs in the whole of Southern Africa. Dropped scraps and tougher material such as skin, as well as insects therefore form an important part of their diet. It is suspected of making kills of bird chicks and pirates food from other Raptors.



The Cape Vulture which goes for the flesh of the carcass using its sharp mandibles to eat muscles and organs.

[Flutterby]

Lovely choice Pumbaa...will dig out some pics soon.

[Mel]

The Cape Vulture which goes for the flesh of the carcass using its sharp mandibles to eat muscles and organs.

And by the looks of it, the one you presented to us made use of it just recently before appearing to the photo shoot.

[Lisbeth]

Interesting how each species is specialized