General Overview

Scientific name: Cathartes aura Common names: Turkey vulture, buzzard (in rural U.S. usage), carrion crow (older term).

Family: Cathartidae (New World vultures). Range: Found throughout most of the Americas from southern Canada down through the U.S., Central America, South America, all the way to Tierra del Fuego.

The Turkey Vulture is one of the most abundant raptors in the Western Hemisphere, playing a crucial role as a scavenger.

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Physical Description

Size: Length: 25–32 inches (64–81 cm). Wingspan: 63–72 inches (160–183 cm). Weight: 2–5 pounds (0.9–2.3 kg).

Appearance: Large dark brown-to-black bird. Long, broad wings held in a shallow “V” (dihedral) when soaring. Bare red head in adults (juveniles have grayish-black heads). Short, hooked ivory-colored bill.

Feathers are slightly silvery on the underside of wings, especially the flight feathers. The red, bald head is why it’s called “Turkey” vulture — it resembles a wild turkey’s bare head.

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Flight & Behavior

Masters of soaring; rarely flap wings for long, instead ride thermals (rising warm air). Wobbling, teetering flight pattern is a signature ID clue. It can soar for hours without a single wingbeat. When roosting, they often gather in groups of dozens or even hundreds in large trees or towers. Usually silent; lacks a syrinx (voice box), so can only hiss or grunt.

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Unique Adaptations

Extraordinary sense of smell: One of the very few birds with a highly developed olfactory system. Can detect ethyl mercaptan, a gas produced during the early stages of animal decay, from miles away.

Cooling/cleaning mechanism: They often defecate on their own legs (urohydrosis). This behavior cools the bird through evaporation and may also sterilize the legs with uric acid.

Bald head: Adaptation to scavenging; prevents carrion from sticking to feathers.

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Diet

Obligate scavenger: Primarily feeds on carrion (dead animals). Rarely kills live prey. Diet includes roadkill, livestock carcasses, dead fish, and smaller dead animals like rodents and rabbits. Plays an essential ecological role in removing decaying animals from the environment, limiting disease spread.

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Habitat & Range

Habitats: Forest edges, open countryside, deserts, pastures, coastlines, wetlands, even suburbs. Rarely in dense unbroken forest.

Range breakdown: Breeds throughout the U.S. and southern Canada. Winters in South America; northern populations migrate south each fall. Southern populations (e.g., South America) are mostly year-round residents.

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Breeding & Nesting

Breeding season: Spring to summer, varies with latitude. Nesting sites: They don’t build traditional nests. Eggs are laid directly on the ground in caves, hollow trees, ledges, thickets, or abandoned buildings.

Clutch size: 1–3 eggs (usually 2). Incubation: Both parents incubate for ~38–41 days. Chicks: Covered in white down; fed by regurgitation. Fledging: Around 9–11 weeks after hatching.

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Social Behavior

Generally, they are peaceful around each other when feeding, unlike more aggressive vultures. Can gather in huge communal roosts. May spread wings in the morning (“horatic pose”) to warm up and dry feathers.

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Defense Mechanisms

Primary defense is regurgitation: they vomit partially digested, foul-smelling carrion at threats, which can deter predators. They also play dead if cornered. Their large size and group roosting provide some protection.

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Conservation Status

IUCN status: Least Concern. Populations are stable or even increasing in many areas. Threats: Collisions with vehicles, poisoning from lead ammunition fragments in carcasses, and habitat loss.

Protected in the U.S. by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.

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Fun & Cultural Notes

Often mistaken for Black Vultures (smaller, shorter-tailed, flap their wings more often, and have less reliance on smell). Sometimes called “buzzards” in rural North America (though true buzzards are hawks in the Old World).

Revered in some cultures as symbols of cleansing, renewal, and ecological balance.