Bird of the Month: Turkey Vulture
Turkey Vulture. Photo by Jeff Bryant.
By Roger Digges, CCAS Vice-President
February is the month when we begin to see birds arrive in Champaign County that have spent the winter someplace warmer. Such is the case with February’s bird of the month, the Turkey Vulture. Although these large soaring birds have been found in our area every month of the year, and some overwinter as close as Vermilion County to our east, birders rarely report them in our county in December or January. But as the air begins to warm, making soaring easier, snow and ice recede, and mammals become more active and prey on or become prey of other animals (or are hit by automobiles), Turkey Vultures move into our area, looking for their favorite food, carrion.
Although Turkey Vultures can look like hawks or even eagles from a distance, unlike those fierce birds of prey or December’s bird of the month, the Great Horned Owl, vultures are not true raptors. They soar like raptors (more or less) and eat meat like raptors, but lack the razor-sharp talons and powerful beak of a raptor. They don’t need them. Turkey Vultures don’t kill their prey. They wait until the animal they eat has died or been killed by something or someone else. Locating a dead animal with their keen sense of smell, vultures descend on the corpse and begin to feast. While that may sound disgusting, think of Turkey Vultures as providing a key garbage disposal service in nature. They help reduce dead animals to pieces that smaller carrion eaters can manage, and they in turn convert it to even smaller parts until insects and bacteria return to the soil what remains of the once living animal.
So how can you identify these early migrants? Up close, whether they’re in the air, on the ground, or perched in a tree, look for a smallish red featherless head, which makes it easier for them to tear into corpses without getting their feathers soiled. From a distance, many birders can identify Turkey Vultures because of their distinctive flight. Unlike Bald Eagles, which soar with wings straight and steady, Turkey Vultures hold their wings slightly raised, forming a shallow “V” shape when seen head-on, and rock from side to side in flight. According to Cornell Lab’s All About Birds, these flight characteristics help Turkey Vultures maintain stability while they fly low enough to smell carrion. Also look for a two-toned wing, black on the leading edge, gray on the trailing edge, as well as a gray tail.
Where can you find Turkey Vultures? During the day, you’ll see them soaring in open areas. Keep your eyes on the sky from mid-morning to late afternoon. You may spot the first Turkey Vulture of the season! They can also can be found roosting in trees near open areas. Unless you have several acres of yard and provide dead animals, you cannot feed Turkey Vultures as you could Dark-eyed Juncos and chickadees.
How are Turkey Vultures doing? According to the North American Breeding Bird Survey, these birds have increased 1.8% annually between 1966 and 2019. Partners in Flight estimates there are 28 million Turkey Vultures in North, Central, and South America. They’re doing well.