Nature is So Fascinating

by Powderjaggy

The Turkey Vulture

Photo credit: Don DeBold

"Hello, class. This lovely lady perched on my back here is Aurora, and she is a turkey vulture. Some ponies like myself often call them 'buzzards', but the name 'buzzard' is also used for some other types of birds, so I'll try to use 'turkey vulture' for today.

"There are ponies out there who don't like these birds very much. Maybe they think turkey vultures look ugly, or even that turkey vultures are dangerous. That is quite unfair to the poor turkey vultures. I think they are beautiful in their own way. But more importantly, it's not very kind to assume what anycreature is like based only on their appearance.

"In reality, turkey vultures almost never hurt any other living creatures at all. Isn't that right, Aurora? Mm-hmm. You see, they only eat other creatures that are already dead.

"Aurora likes to spend her nights in a big tree or a tall cliff, with dozens or even hundreds of other turkey vultures. When they wake up in the morning, the first thing she and her friends usually do is spend some time tidying their feathers and sunning themselves as they wait for the sun to heat up the ground.

"About an hour or two after Princess Celestia raises the sun, the ground starts getting hot enough to warm the air above it. This creates these columns of warm air currents that rise into the sky, called thermals. Oh, yes, those of you who fly probably know all about thermals. Turkey vultures are experts at riding them. You can see just how long and broad Aurora's wings are. Her wingspan is nearly as big as Princess Celestia's, and this allows her to soar on thermals almost effortlessly.

"It's easy to recognize a turkey vulture as they soar. Not only are they big and dark, but they angle their wings upward while they are flying. They also rock from side to side in flight, so they can find lift on even very small air currents. I think... I think I might like flying more if I could do it as easily as Aurora does.

"Although turkey vultures like to sleep in big groups, they prefer to look for food on their own. However, if one vulture notices that another has found something to eat, they will often head in the same direction as the other vulture. Soaring helps Aurora spot her food from far away, of course, but she has another useful trick for finding food.

"She has a wonderful sense of smell. It allows her to find dead animals that she cannot see from the air, which is especially useful while she is foraging over dense forests. In this way, she can actually help out other types of vultures whose sense of smell is not so keen, like condors and black vultures. These other vultures follow turkey vultures to find food in forest habitats. Sometimes, the turkey vultures receive help from other vultures, too. Condors are bigger and stronger than turkey vultures, so they can open up the body of a large animal that a turkey vulture wouldn't be able to feed on by itself.

"It's not just other vultures that benefit from what vultures do. Vultures are a great help to all the other creatures in their environment. Yes, even all of us! Many germs that grow inside dead bodies can make us horribly sick. But vultures don't get sick from all the dead animals they eat, because their amazing digestive system can destroy even those deadly germs. And since vultures are able to find and clean up dead animals so quickly, they play a big part in preventing the other creatures in the area from getting sick.

"Maybe not everycreature finds Aurora as beautiful as I do. But as you can see, that doesn't make her dangerous, or unimportant, or any less deserving of kindness. Sometimes, it's the most unappreciated creatures who help us out most of all. Have a lovely day, everycreature, and stay kind to each other."

Author's Note:

The turkey vulture (Cathartes aura) is found throughout most of the Americas, as far north as southern Canada. Although the turkey vulture is common and its numbers are stable, around the world many other vultures are under serious threat of extinction due to prosecution by humans, as well as the use of veterinary drugs that are poisonous to vultures.

Comments

[Thought Prism]

Vultures: getting rid of corpses so we don't have to.

[B_Munro]

The die off of vultures in India due to the veterinary drugs has been particularly spectacular (in the bad sense of the word).

[Powderjaggy]

10860374
For real, it's saddening.