In California, you may observe all three Vultures that live in North America. Turkey Vultures, California Condors, and Black Vultures are the species.
Vultures urinate on themselves to stay cool, only eat bacteria-laden dead creatures that they stick their bald heads into to rip the flesh, and vomit to avoid being eaten.
The vultures’ horrible behaviors, on the other hand, are remarkable adaptations that aid the birds in staying alive and cleaning up their surroundings.
Vultures are said to eliminate the germs on their legs that they acquire when wandering across the rotting carcasses by peeing on themselves.
Because of the difficulty in inserting their heads inside carcasses to get to the flesh, vultures’ bald heads prevent their feathers from congealing with blood. They have weak legs, so they can only rip and tear their food using their powerful beaks. Their talons aren’t strong enough to grab and hold it.
Vultures have extremely strong stomach acid, which allows them to eat the bacteria-laden corpses that may harm or kill other species, making them one of the few species that can do so safely. Botulism and anthrax are examples of bacteria that cause illness.
Since they gorge themselves as a result become extremely heavy, vomiting to get away from predators is thought to help them be lighter so they can fly away.
Vultures are unable to sing, but when disturbed or jostling for a space at a carcass, they may emit deep hisses or grunts.
You should explore all of the eagles and hawks you may observe in California if you like learning about birds of prey.
According to avibase, this guide will aid you determine the varieties of Vultures seen in California, as well as delivering actual information on when they may be seen. It draws data from birdwatchers on ebird.
3 Species of Vultures in California
1. Turkey Vulture
In California, Turkey Vultures may be seen year-round. Summer checklists and winter checklists submitted by birdwatchers for the state list them at a rate of 26% and 24%, respectively.
The name Turkey Vultures is appropriate. With their enormous, bald, red heads and upper necks, as well as brownish-black bodies, they resemble turkeys. Nonetheless, they are bigger than turkeys, with wide wings that are somewhat elevated and form a “V” when they fly.
They appear two-toned because of the gray coloration that comes under their wings. Their bills are light in color, and their eyes are dark brown.
Turkey Vultures are divided into six subspecies, with three of them occurring in North America. They are sometimes referred to as “Northern” Turkey Vultures because of this. They vary only slightly, with the most obvious differences being in the underwing feathers’ proportions and color.
- Cathartes aura
- Length: 26 – 32 in (66 – 81 cm)
- Weight: 51.2 oz (1451 g)
- Wingspan: 68 – 72 in (173 – 183 cm)
Turkey Vultures may be found in a variety of environments, however open and semi-open places near woods are where they are most frequent. Foraging requires open environments, such as grasslands, shrublands, deserts, and wetlands. To give them a height advantage for taking flight, they also need forests with high trees for nesting and roosting, as well as middle to high elevations like hills and mountainous places.
Foraging and roosting in farmlands or pasturelands are also common occurrences. While they may not be able to locate their preferred habitats, human-made constructions are likewise taken over by them in urbanized regions.
Carrion, or recently dead or rotting creatures, is the primary food of Turkey Vultures. They may kill small or weak animals, as well as feeding on roadkill and washed-up fish.
Turkey Vulture nests are common in protected areas, such as beneath rocks and historical structures. Hollow trees or logs, as well as thickets, can be used to hide them. However, they do not construct nests in reality. Instead, at the nesting site, the female lays one to three eggs on the ground. Both parents participate in incubation, which takes approximately 38 to 41 days.
Fun Facts: Turkey Vultures have a strong sense of smell, and from considerable distances, they can detect scents of rotting or dead creatures on the ground.
Turkey Vultures will vomit to offer a diversion and flee when they are threatened or irritated. They could even feign death.
2. California Condor
California Condors are a critically endangered species that have been observed all year along the southern coast of California, though they are not particularly common.
The biggest North American land bird is the California Condor. Only about 500 individuals were estimated to be alive in 2020, making it a critically endangered species.
The California Condor is a very huge bird of prey. Because of their large wings, which they barely flap, they mimic airplanes in the air. When they’re in the air, their main feathers appear to be long “fingers.”
On their heads and necks, California Condors have yellow skin. During courtship, or when it’s angry or stressed, the hue may shift from yellowish to reddish (and variations in between). Their scleras (the iris surround them) are brownish-red and they have crimson eyes.
During courting or for aggressive displays, they have pinkish air sacs in the throat and around the breast region that puff out. In addition, the base of their necks are covered in black feathers. They have black backs and wings. During flight, triangular white markings may be seen on the bottom of the wings.
With the exception of the head and the patches on their underwing’s undersides, juveniles appear similar to adults. The head of a juvenile is dark brown with black spots. The color is a mottled gray, rather than white, under its wings.
- Gymnogyps californianus
- Length: 46 – 52 in (117 – 132 cm)
- Weight: 356.8 oz (10, 112 g)
- Wingspan: 72 – 108 in (183 – 274 cm)
California Condors prefer open or semi-open grasslands, scrublands, and woodlands for foraging and nesting, so you can find them in a range of habitats. To provide them high perches for takeoff, they also require as much as 6,000 feet of elevation and open and windy locations such as cliff edges or exposed tree branches.
To rise to a higher altitude and stay in the air, California Condors often utilize thermals, or warm air currents.
Carrion eaters are California Condors. Carrion is the flesh of any rotting animal. They consume dead creatures of all sizes, especially those that have just perished. Sheep, deer, elk, horses, sea lions, and whales are among the animals that make up this group. To meet their calcium requirements, they consume even the bones of smaller animals.
Cal Condor makes a few grunts, hisses, and snorts while calling.
California Condors don’t build nests, so their nests are usually found in cliff caves. These aren’t actual nests since California Condors don’t build them. Every other year, the female lays just one egg. One of the reasons for their low population is due to this. The bad news is that they are known to “double clutch,” so if one egg is lost, another may be laid to replace it.
The researchers then use this to increase the breeding rate by taking one egg and raising it themselves, while leaving the second egg with the true parents. For around fifty-five days, both parents incubate the eggs. The infants stay with their parents for the duration of their second year after being born.
Fun Facts: The life expectancy of California Condors is up to sixty years. Despite this, they were almost extinct until conservation efforts succeeded, and nowadays as many as 500 birds may be found in the wild and in captivity.
3. Black Vulture
In California, black vultures are considered uncommon or accidental, but they have been seen all year.
The Black Vulture has a black body. Among vultures, they’re considered the darkest of all. While they have silvery patches on the underside of their wings that make it appear as though they have fingers when in flight, their backs, wings, breasts, bellies, and tails are black. They have grayish-white legs and brown eyes.
The head and neck of the Black Vulture are gray, featherless, and wrinkled-looking.
Since it has to stick its head into the bodies of dead creatures in order to access their richest areas, Black Vultures are “bald.” When remnants of the carrion stick to the feathers, having feathers on their heads makes it difficult for them to clean themselves.
While the Black Vulture is not its official name, it is often referred to as such in the United States. It’s just intended to set it apart from the Eurasian Black Vulture, Aegypius monachus.
- Coragyps atratus
- Length: 23 – 27 in (58 – 69 cm)
- Weight: 76.8 oz (2177 g)
- Wingspan: 54 – 60 in (137 – 152 cm)
In open lowland and middle elevation environments, you may spot Black Vultures. They roost in wooded areas near to water, which are common in forested landscapes. Shrublands, meadows, swamps, and pastures are among their other habitats, and they have been spotted foraging in trash bins and garbage dumps in human-occupied towns.
Black Vultures eat carrion or rotting creatures, but they mostly feed on carrion. They may be able to sense deceased creatures on the ground, but they usually depend on other scavenger birds to lead them to food.
They consume raccoons, coyotes, snakes, and even floating fish. They eat tiny to enormous-sized dead birds. They also spend time rummaging through the trash in dumpsters and landfills, killing little or defenseless animals like newborn calves, lambs, and tortoises.
Black Vultures Grunting: They grunt a deep “coo” sound rather than making many noises.
Since they don’t build nests, Black Vultures’ nests are technically non-existent. In places such as caves, abandoned buildings, and thickets, they simply lay their eggs on the ground. They might also utilize successful nesting sites for many years by placing them inside hollow trees and tree stumps.
For twenty-eight to forty-one days, both parents incubate one to three eggs laid by female black vultures. Their parents feed them through regurgitation after they hatch, spitting up food from their own stomachs and into the mouths of their children. They can keep their offspring for eight months in utero.
Black vultures have communal roosts and share food among family members, indicating that they form deep social connections. Non-relatives are rigorously screened before being allowed to join the communal roosts, and those who try will be attacked.
Fun Fact: The Black Vulture has a keen sense of smell, but not a keen sense of sight, so it will follow others in search of food.