White Vulture
by Barbara Orenya
Title
White Vulture
Artist
Barbara Orenya
Medium
Photograph - Digital Artwork
Description
Impressive gyps beautifully enhanced with white texture to give this raptor a more angelic look...^_^
* Featured in Feathers and beaks 04.15.2013
* Featured in Photo and Textures group 04.12.2013
* Featured in Greeting Cards group 04.11.2013
* Featured in The European Artist 2013 04.10.2013
*******************
Vulture is the name given to two groups of convergently evolved scavenging birds: the New World Vultures, including the well-known Californian and Andean Condors; and the Old World Vultures, including the birds that are seen scavenging on carcasses of dead animals on African plains. New World Vultures are found in North and South America; Old World Vultures are found in Europe, Africa and Asia, meaning that between the two groups, vultures are found on every continent except Australia and Antarctica.
A particular characteristic of many vultures is a bald head, devoid of normal feathers. This helps to keep the head clean when feeding. Research has shown that the bare skin may play an important role in thermoregulation.
A group of vultures is called a wake, committee, venue, kettle, or volt. The term kettle refers to vultures in flight, while committee, volt, and venue refer to vultures resting in trees. Wake is reserved for a group of vultures that are feeding.[2][3] The word Geier (taken from the German language) does not have a precise meaning in ornithology; it is occasionally used to refer to a vulture in English, as in some poetry.
Vultures are classified into two groups: Old World Vultures and New World Vultures. The similarities between the two different groups are due to convergent evolution.
The Old World vultures found in Africa, Asia, and Europe belong to the family Accipitridae, which also includes eagles, kites, buzzards, and hawks. Old World vultures find carcasses exclusively by sight.
The New World vultures and condors found in warm and temperate areas of the Americas are not closely related to the similar Accipitridae, but belong in the family Cathartidae, which was once considered to be related to the storks. However, recent DNA evidence suggests that they should be included among the Accipitriformes, along with other birds of prey.[citation needed] However, they are still not closely related to the other vultures, and their similarities are due to convergent evolution. Several species have a good sense of smell, unusual for raptors, and are able to smell dead animals from great heights, up to a mile away.
Vultures seldom attack healthy animals, but may kill the wounded or sick. When a carcass has too thick a hide for its beak to open, it waits for a larger scavenger to eat first. Vast numbers have been seen upon battlefields. They gorge themselves when prey is abundant, until their crop bulges, and sit, sleepy or half torpid, to digest their food. They do not carry food to their young in their claws, but disgorge it from the crop. These birds are of great value as scavengers, especially in hot regions. Vulture stomach acid is exceptionally corrosive, allowing them to safely digest putrid carcasses infected with Botulinum toxin, hog cholera, and anthrax bacteria that would be lethal to other scavengers. New World vultures often vomit when threatened or approached. Contrary to some accounts, they don't 'projectile vomit' on their attacker as a deliberate defense, but it does lighten their stomach load to make take-off easier, and the vomited meal residue may distract a predator, allowing the bird to escape. New World vultures also urinate straight down their legs; the uric acid kills bacteria accumulated from walking through carcasses, and also acts as evaporative cooling.
The vultures in south Asia, mainly in India and Nepal, have declined dramatically in just the last 10�15 years. It has been proposed that this may be due to residues of the veterinary drug Diclofenac in animal carcasses.The government of India has taken very late cognizance of this fact and have banned the drug for animals. However, it may take decades for vultures to come back to their earlier population level. The same problem is also seen in Nepal where government has taken some late steps to conserve remaining vultures.
Source : Wikipedia
Photograph : PublicDomainPictures
Uploaded
April 10th, 2013
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Comments (67)
AnnaJo Vahle
Wonderful photograph. I love the way that you composed and treated it. The description is great, too. Nice work all around, Barbara. f/v
Julie Magers Soulen
You have made this bird so beautiful! I like both of the photos but the white on white is my favorite. f/v