vulture

1. Any of various large birds of prey of the New World family Cathartidae or of the Old World family Accipitridae, characteristically having dark plumage and a featherless head and neck and generally feeding on carrion.
2. A person of a rapacious, predatory, or profiteering nature.

[Middle English, from Old French voltour, from Latin vultur.]

For more information on vulture, visit Britannica.com.

A large bird of prey in the order Falconiformes. In two major groups, the Old World vultures (family Accipitridae, subfamily Aegypiinae) and the New World vultures (family Cathartidae). The former include the Egyptian black (Aegypius monachus) and griffon (Gypius fulvus) vultures. The New World group include the condors and the black (Coragyps atratus) and turkey (Cathartes aura) vultures.

A vulture is a bird that feeds on carrion (dead animals). Popular culture has further invested them with the associated trait of waiting for something to die. So a dream about a vulture often reflects a situation in our waking life in which we feel that someone else is waiting for us to die, or death in a less literal way, such as waiting for us to fail. A vulture dream can, of course, represent the opposite situation in which we are waiting for someone or something else to die or to fail.

For other uses, see Vulture (disambiguation).

Vultures
Griffon vulture, Gyps fulvus
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Aves
Families
Accipitridae (Aegypiinae) Cathartidae

Griffon Vulture soaring

Some members of both the old and new world vultures have an unfeathered neck and head, shown as radiating heat in this thermographic image.

Vultures are scavenging birds, feeding mostly on the carcasses of dead animals. Vultures are found on every continent except Antarctica and Oceania.

A particular characteristic of many vultures is a bald head, devoid of feathers. Research has shown that the bare skin may play an important role in thermoregulation.^[1]

A group of vultures is occasionally called a venue, and when circling in the air a group of vultures is called a kettle. The word Geier (taken from the German language) does not have a precise meaning in ornithology, and it is occasionally used to refer to a vulture in English, as in some poetry.

Contents 1 Classification 1.1 Old World vultures 1.2 New World vultures 2 Feeding 3 Notes 4 References

Classification

Vultures are classified into two groups: Old World vultures and New World vultures. The similarities between the two different groups are due to convergent evolution.

Old World vultures

Main article: Old World vulture

The Old World vultures found in Africa, Asia, and Europe belong to the family Accipitridae, which also includes eagles, kites, buzzards, and hawks. Old World vultures find carcasses exclusively by sight.

New World vultures

Main article: New World vulture

The New World vultures and condors found in warm and temperate areas of the Americas are not closely related to the superficially similar Accipitridae, but belong in the family Cathartidae, which was once quite close to the storks. However, recent DNA evidence suggests that they should be included among the Accipitriformes, along with other birds of prey. However, they are still not directly related to the other vultures. Several species have a good sense of smell, unusual for raptors, and are able to smell the dead they focus upon from great heights.

Feeding

Vulture, getting ready to strike.

A group of White-backed Vultures eating the carcass of a Wildebeest.

Vultures seldom attack healthy animals, but may kill the wounded or sick. Vast numbers have been seen upon battlefields. They gorge themselves when prey is abundant, till their crop bulges, and sit, sleepy or half torpid, to digest their food. They do not carry food to their young in their claws, but disgorge it from the crop. These birds are of great value as scavengers, especially in hot regions. Botulinum toxin, the toxin that causes botulism, does not affect them, and they can eat rotten flesh containing anthrax and cholera bacteria.^[2] When a vulture's dinner has too thick a hide for its beak to open, it waits for a larger scavenger to eat first.^[3]

Notes

1. ^ 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. doi:10.1016/j.jtherbio.2008.01.002. 
2. ^ "Turkey Vulture". http://www.lairweb.org.nz/vulture/turkey.html. 
3. ^ Vulture Facts and more at WebVulture.com, your Online Vulture Resource

References

• Hilty, Birds of Venezuela, ISBN 0-7136-6418-5

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

Dansk (Danish)
n. - grib

Nederlands (Dutch)
gier, roofzuchtig/ hebzuchtig persoon

Français (French)
n. - (lit, fig) vautour

Deutsch (German)
n. - Geier

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - (ορνιθ., μτφ.) γύπας, όρνεο

Italiano (Italian)
avvoltoio

Português (Portuguese)
n. - abutre (m) (Ornit.), urubu (m)

Русский (Russian)
гриф, хищник

Español (Spanish)
n. - buitre

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - gam

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
秃鹰, 贪婪的人

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 禿鷹, 貪婪的人

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 독수리, 대머리수리, 사기꾼

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - ハゲワシ, ハゲタカ

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) نسر‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮פרס (עוף דורס)‬

If you are unable to view some languages clearly, click here.

To select your translation preferences click here.