![]() ![]() It was like I was back in the days of flying, prehistoric monsters. I silently scolded myself – why I am not standing 30 meters more to the left?! I would have been closer, and the vulture would have flown right over my head. The color of the rock exactly matched the color of the bird’s feathers. It passed a steep rock face and headed for the rock ridge to our left. The vulture was flying directly toward us. We immediately abandoned photographing the common Alpine Chough and pointed our lenses at the growing silhouette on the horizon. Yet it didn’t take half an hour before an unmistakable silhouette appeared over the horizon – wide wings, five “fingers,” and a long tail shaped like a wedge. We were prepared for a long day in freezing weather with an uncertain outcome in sight. ![]() We chose the spot deliberately because large birds, like eagles and vultures, like to take advantage of the rising thermal currents on which they can be carried up high. The sun was shining, and slight wind was blowing. The morning after arriving at the site, my friends and I took a spot right on the edge of a cliff, about 2350 meters / 7700 feet above sea level. Our destination was a well-known site in the Swiss Alps. Still, there are places where they can be spotted with a bit of luck. These birds cover a vast territory in their search for food. Last week, however, everything finally fell into place, and I went with a bunch of friends to see the vultures. Before, I had only seen it once in Lesotho, Africa. I have wanted to see and photograph this bird for a long time. Even so, it is still considered near-threatened today. In the Alps, a group of 50 individuals was released between 19, which formed a viable population. Nowadays, this majestic predator is beginning to return to the skies of some European mountain ranges, such as the Alps and the Pyrenees. This was due both to its direct persecution, the destruction of nests, and the laying of poisoned baits intended for other predators. Yet it virtually disappeared in Europe in the 19th and 20th centuries. With the possible exception of Aeschylus, though, the Bearded Vulture poses no threat to people or livestock. Perhaps he was in the wrong place at the wrong time, or perhaps the story is just a tragic myth, like that of his Oresteia. The ancient Greek playwright Aeschylus is said to have been killed by a falling turtle shell dropped by a vulture. In southeastern Europe and Pakistan, vultures break up tortoises in a similar way. The rest of the work is then done by the extremely powerful digestive juices of its stomach. It repeats this until the bone breaks into smaller pieces. It carries large bones or even whole skeletons up high (sometimes 80+ meters / 260+ feet), from where it drops them onto rocks. To do this, the Bearded Vulture has developed a unique strategy. Although it can swallow incredibly large chunks, sometimes it is necessary to split the bones. This predator has a particular fondness for large thigh bones full of marrow. It is the bones of larger animals such as ibex, chamois, and sheep that make up around 85% of its diet. With its perfect eyesight, the Bearded Vulture searches for very unusual food: bones. With wings like that, this bird of prey can relentlessly cruise the skies over its thousands of square kilometers of territory. With a wingspan of up to 2.8 meters / 9.2 feet – longer than the height of a door! – the Bearded Vulture is a truly impressive bird. With around 11,000 species, they can make us smile, laugh, and watch their behavior in amazement. But if there’s one group of birds that commands the most respect, it’s the bird of prey – also known as the raptor. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |