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Post by varmint101 on Mar 8, 2009 10:26:53 GMT -5
I saw my first Black Vulture Friday. That's the first time I've seen one in Brown County. I looked it up and we're in it's normal range. Even though we're in it's range, are they a normal sighting for others? Like I said, I've never laid eyes on one before here, only Turkey Vultures, and I've always paid attention to birds. Other than size and color, the main difference is what I'd call their bobbed tail and a grey/black head. www.geometer.org/Brazil2006/images/BlackVulture.jpg |
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Post by gundude on Mar 8, 2009 10:34:41 GMT -5
Nice pic of Obama you got there Matt!............. I didn't just say that did I?
Yea I have seen a few of them now and then but not many
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Post by tusti on Mar 8, 2009 12:16:28 GMT -5
"Nice pic of Obama you got there Matt!............. I didn't just say that did I?"
Yeah ya did ;D
I thought the thread was going to be about Chicago politics ;D ;D ;D ;D
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Post by gunnah on Mar 8, 2009 12:51:00 GMT -5
Interesting bird. They're increasing their range slowly northward.
For years the only place you'd see them north of the Ohio River was near Madison.
I know of recent nests near Williams in Lawrence Co. and they can be found along SR 37 at the DOT dead animal dumps near Bedford and up to Bloomington.
Th BV's lack the olfactory abilities of the turkey vulture so they'll often the TV's to the carrion th e latter found.
Gene Stratton Porter claims she found a Black Vulture nest and young near her Limberlost home near the beginning of the last century. She wrote a chapter in one of her books and illustrated magazine articles called the Pharaoh's chicken with her photo images of it. This report of the BV nesting seemed to me to far north for the birds, though the image of the young bird displayed a black head like a BV, the bird's nostril was way to large. I feel sure it was of a young turkey vulture.
These birds have a bad reputation with livestock producers for the injuries caused to their stock at birth.
Could be climate or number of road killed deer that are helping these birds increase their range.
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Post by varmint101 on Mar 8, 2009 17:56:56 GMT -5
Pretty neat info gunnah. I did see that about their olfactory senses and that they had to find carrion by sight rather than smell.
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Post by scrub-buster on Mar 10, 2009 21:04:41 GMT -5
Do they seem to roost in large numbers? Just outside of Rising Sun, IN, there is an area thats loaded with vultures. I think they are the black ones. There must be hundreds of them roosting on a few trees almost every night. It is really kind of creepy looking.
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Post by varmint101 on Mar 11, 2009 11:12:07 GMT -5
Are you sure they're vultures and not crows? The black vulture is smaller than the Turkey Vulture. That said though, I read where they rarely aren't in pairs of 2 or more, so it could be I suppose. The one I saw happened to be alone or I missed it's mate.
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Post by danf on Mar 11, 2009 11:57:38 GMT -5
There's a few areas around here that seem to be "normal" roosting areas for turkey vultures. The easiest area to mention is just north of US 40 on the east side of US 231 (south of Greencastle). Seems like there's always 40-50 of them roosting in trees down there, regardless of time of year.
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Post by dadfsr on Mar 11, 2009 14:47:58 GMT -5
Said something to our "bird watcher" here in the shop about them. He said that they have been watching them at Eagle Creek too. I've been kind of watching the bigger birds up here but all I'm seeing is hawks, TV's and bald eagles so far.
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Post by huxbux on Mar 11, 2009 15:25:40 GMT -5
That's pretty neat Matt. I've never seen any of those in Brown county either. I'll have to keep my eyes peeled down there this spring.
I can't remember ever seeing so many hawks, seems there's one on every fence post around here.
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Post by danf on Mar 11, 2009 19:33:17 GMT -5
I can't remember ever seeing so many hawks, seems there's one on every fence post around here. You aren't the only one.  I don't see it ever happening, but IMHO it's time to implement a short season for them. They are just about as bad as coyotes in a lot of respects. |
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Post by huxbux on Mar 11, 2009 20:15:40 GMT -5
But wouldn't they make a great looking mount?
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Post by danf on Mar 11, 2009 20:19:40 GMT -5
;D ;D Wonder how they taste? |
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Post by old3arrows on Mar 11, 2009 20:45:43 GMT -5
My god man don't eat em'!!!!!!!!! Remember what their number one self defense mechanism is!!!!!!!!!! Puking on anyone or anything that comes close!!!!!!!!!!!  |
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Post by danf on Mar 11, 2009 20:48:46 GMT -5
;D The exchange between myself and hux was about hawks. ;D Not the vultures!
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Post by scrub-buster on Mar 11, 2009 22:43:12 GMT -5
Are you sure they're vultures and not crows? The black vulture is smaller than the Turkey Vulture. That said though, I read where they rarely aren't in pairs of 2 or more, so it could be I suppose. The one I saw happened to be alone or I missed it's mate. I am sure they are not crows. I will try to get a picture of them. One cold morning last year, they were all spread out across a hillside with there wings spread out warming up in the sun. It was a really cool sight. I would have loved to get a picture of that. |
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