More+Common+Birds

=__**Turkey Vultures**__= Turkey vultures are some of the most common vultures in America and like all vultures, they eat dead animals. =‍**__Habitat__**= The world's 4,500,000 turkey vultures are found in most of the Americas, from the United States to Argentina. They typicaly fly over open areas such as landfills, fields, and roadsides, where it is easy to spot food. =‍__**Apperance**__= Turkey vultures are some of the largest raptors out there. they have a wingspan of up to 178 cm and have a lenth of up to 81 cm. They weigh about 2000 grams. From a distance, they appear black but as you get closer, you see that they are dark brown and with a red, bald head like a turkey's. The undersides of their flight feathers are lighter, giving them a two-toned apperance. =‍__**Behavior**__= Turkey vultures fly with their wings raised in a slight V. They are wobbly and beat their wings very rarely. When not in flight, they roost on dead trees or poles, or gather around dead animals. They like to nest on cliffsides and build partial nests, usually by digging holes and arranging vegatation. =**__Diet__**= Turkey vultures are scavangers. They will not go after live prey. They will scavange food from dumpsters and landfills and they will eat any dead animal and pick the bones clean. They eat the soft parts first and some of them will even leave the scent glands of dead skunks. They are immune to dieseases like anthrax, cholera and salmonellla. =__**Turkey Vultures and You.**__= Turkey Vultures are often seen as bringers of death and diesease, but they are quite the opposite. They clean up the enviornment. Many people trap and kill vultures because they think that they spread diesease. Vultures, like all raptors, are now illegal to kill or posses in the United States. You should just leave them alone and do not use pesticides. When hunters kill animals and leave them there, vultures can get lead poisoning from the bullet so if you ever go hunting, you should never leave your game lying where you shot it. =__**Sources**__=
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