Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura)

From USFWS Pacific Region:

#USFWS #Animal #Bird #Scavenger

MIGRATION ALERT: This turkey vulture may not be a looker, but worth looking at as it passes through our region. After all, worth is much more than feather-deep. Turkey vultures are raptors — dustbins of the desert and open landscapes. Turkey vultures like other raptors are scavengers, cleaning up after more picky eaters. Unlike most birds, these opportunists find a meal using smell, with a sense so keen that just a few parts per trillion tip them off. And, when it's time to eat, they keep clean while cleaning up thanks to a bald head.
When you're out in open country next, look up. See a large bird riding the thermals with a noticeable wobble with wings raised in a “v” shape? It’s a turkey vulture serving its landscape, one carcass at a time.
Photo credit: Roy Lowe/USFWS 





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