| Common Name | Black Vulture |
|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Coragyps atratus |
| Type of Report | Out-of-Season |
| Date of Observation | 12/18/2017 |
| Media | |
| Number Observed | 2 |
| Reporting Observer's Name | Kyle Jones |
| Mailing Address | 230 South Windsor St South Royalton, VT 05068 United States Map It |
| Email hidden; Javascript is required. | |
| Date Completed | 12/20/2017 |
| Names & Emails of Other Contributing Observers | Katie Reilley |
| Latitude of Observation (enter 0 if unable to provide) | 43.994017 |
| Longitude of Observation (enter 0 if unable to provide) | -73.175401 |
| Place Name | Middlebury Compost Area |
| Township | Middlebury |
| County | Addison |
| Vermont eBird Checklist URL | ebird.org |
| Time of Day | 08:40 AM |
| Length of Time Observed | Offf and on for 1/2 hour |
| Maximum Estimated Distance from Bird (in feet) | 100 |
| Minimum Estimated Distance from Bird (in feet) | 75 |
| Noteworthy Weather Conditions | Clear |
| Optical Equipment Used for Observation | 7x bins an dpoint and shoot camera |
| Observer’s Previous Acquaintance With This or Similar Species | I grew up with turkey (mostly) and black vultures. Black vultures were special enough that I always cheked for them and enjoyed finding them. Well, okay, not always, but perhaps from age 12 on. I have seen a single black vulture previouly in Vermont, and almost had a collision on I-89 stopping to get a picture of it. These were easier. |
| I certify that any attachments included with this report were captured during this observation event. | |
| Description of Habitat | Compost piles and hardwood forest |
| Behaviors Observed | Perched on compost, then flew into trees and stayed. |
| Description of Vocalizations | N/A |
| Verbal Narrative & Description of Observation | Tii and I walked up to the compost piles and saw crows and black vultures perched on top. After I took a couple of photographs the vultures flew into nearby hardwood trees where they stayed for the duration of our visit. The Reilleys came as Tii and I were skirting around the birds so as not to flush them, and independently located, identified, and photographed the vultures. |
| Relative Size & Shape | Larger than crows. |
| Head | Featherless dark gray heads. |
| Feet & Bill | Long yellowish-gray legs. |
| Upper Back | Black |
| Lower Back & Rump | Black |
| Wings | Black with characteristic whitish primaries when viewed from underneath (in flight only). |
| Breast, Belly, Flanks, Under Tail Coverts | Black |
| Tail | Black. Short compared to Turkey Vulture tail length. |
| IMPORTANT: What similar species were eliminated when making the identification and how was this bird different? | These were clearly vultures--big wrinkled skin headed birds sitting on compost piles. When they flew, the realtively short tails and white under primaries were conspicuous, seprating them from Turkey Vultures or Black Spanish Turkeys. |
| Other Notes & Comments | I am not aware of a way to age or sex black vultures in the field. Jerry Reilley's photos are included in this documentation. My photographs are in the eBird checklist. |
| This report was written from notes taken: | Written from Memory |
Vermont Atlas of Life Partners
