Black vulture seen in Estonia for ninth time
Photo Eedi Lelov
Translation Liis
Photographed on 1.06.2015, in Salu in Pärnu county
Black vulture Raisakotkas Aegypius monachus
It is one of the world’s largest bird of prey, with a body length of more than a metre, weight around 10 kilos and a wing span of up to 3 metres. Blackish brown plumage, and a collar with pointed feathers round the base of the neck. Head and neck are covered only with fluffy down, and the beak is characteristic for an eagle, but note the colours. The large eyes seem to bulge. The feet are strong and large. The talons however are not sharp but blunt.
What does the stray visitor feed on? It catches frogs and lizards in meadows. If it finds carrion to feed on somewhere it can be extremely aggressive towards other birds and mammals around it.
Slightly more than one and a half thousand black vulture pairs may be breeding in Europe .
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