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Vulture
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
'Vultures'
Griffon vulture, Gyps fulvus
Scientific
classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Chordata
Class:
Aves
Orders
Falconiformes (Fam. Accipitridae (part))
Ciconiiformes (Fam. Cathartidae)
Griffon
Vulture soaring
Vultures are scavenging birds, feeding
mostly on the carcasses of dead animals. Vultures are found in every continent
except Antarctica and Oceania.
A particular characteristic
of many vultures is a bald head, devoid of feathers. This is likely because a
feathered head would become spattered with blood and other fluids, and thus be
difficult to keep clean. This feature also allows quick cleaning in a nearby
river.
A group of vultures is
occasionally called a venue in literature. When circling in the air, a
group of vultures is called a kettle. The word Geier from old English
does not have a precise meaning in ornithology and can refer to a vulture as in
some poetry.
ClassificationVultures are classified
into two groups: Old World vultures and New World vultures. The similarities
between the two groups are due to convergent evolution rather than a close
relationship.
Old
World vultures
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.
New
World vultures
The New World vultures and condors
found in warm and temperate areas of the Americas are not closely related to
the superficially similar Accipitridae, but belong in the family Cathartidae,
which is quite close to the storks. Several species have a good sense of smell,
unusual for raptors.
Feeding
Some
members of both the old and new world vultures have an unfeathered neck and
head, shown as radiating heat in this thermographic image.
Vultures seldom attack
healthy animals, but may kill the wounded or sick. Vast numbers have been seen
upon battlefields. They gorge themselves when prey is abundant, till 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. They can eat
rotten flesh containing anthrax, botulism, and cholera bacteria, which are
destroyed in the stomach.[citation needed]
Threat
due to diclofenac poisoning
The vulture population in India
and Pakistan has declined by up to 95% recently in the past decade, and two or
three of the species of vulture in South Asia are nearing extinction. This has
been caused by the practice of giving working farm animals diclofenac, which is
a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) with anti-inflammatory and pain
killing actions. Diclofenac administration keeps animals that are ill or in
pain working on the land for longer, but, if the ill animals die, their
carcasses contain diclofenac. Farmers leave the dead animals out in the open,
relying on vultures to tidy up. Diclofenac present in carcass flesh is eaten by
the vultures, but unfortunately vultures are very sensitive to diclofenac and
suffer kidney failure, visceral gout, and death as a result of diclofenac poisoning.
The decline in vultures has
led to hygiene problems in India as carcasses of dead animals now tend to rot,
or be eaten by rats or wild dogs, rather than be tidied up by vultures. Rabies
among these scavengers is a major health threat. India has the world's highest
rate of rabies.
The decline in vultures
causes particular problems for certain communities, such as the Parsi, who
practice sky burials, where the human dead are put on the top of Towers of
Silence and are eaten by vultures, leaving only dry bones.
Meloxicam (another NSAID)
has been found to be harmless to vultures and should prove an acceptable
alternative to diclofenac. The Government of India banned diclofenac, but it
continues to be sold over a year later and is still a problem in other parts of
the world [1].
Vultures in culture
Ancient Egypt
In Southern Africa, the
name for a Nubian vulture is synonymous with the term applied to lovers,
because these vultures are always seen in pairs, mother and child remaining
closely bonded together. Pairing, bonding, protecting, and loving are essential
attributes associated with the vulture's size and its ability to soar high up
in the sky. The Egyptians considered the vulture an excellent mother, and its
wide wingspan was seen as all-encompassing and providing a protective cover to
its infants. The vulture hieroglyph
was the uniliteral sign
used for the glottal sound (3) including words such as mother, prosperous,
grandmother, and ruler
Western
culture
In contrast to many other
birds of prey, vultures have often been considered repulsive in Western
culture, due to their association with rotting flesh and death. Sensationalistic
journalists looking for news about bloody crimes are sometimes called vultures.
Financial investors who look for indebted companies or countries to buy securities
at low prices are known as vulture funds. Lawyers who profit off death such as inheritance,
wrongful death, or life insurance lawyers, may also be called vultures. A
prominent Spider-Man supervillain is known as the Vulture
References
- Ferguson-Lees, Christie, Franklin, Mead
and Burton Raptors of the World ISBN 0713680261
- Grimmett, Inskipp and Inskipp, Birds of
India ISBN 0-691-04910-6
- Hilty, Birds of Venezuela, ISBN
0-7136-6418-5
- Ian Sinclair, Phil Hockey and Warwick
Tarboton, SASOL Birds of Southern Africa (Struik 2002) ISBN
1-86872-721-1
- NSAID effects on vultures (BBC website)
- "India's Vultures Fall Prey to a Drug
in the Cattle They Feed On", New York Times, Amelia Gentleman, March
28, 2006.
Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Vulture&action=history
|
'Vultures' |
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|
Griffon vulture, Gyps fulvus |
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|
Scientific
classification |
||||||
|
||||||
|
Orders |
||||||
|
Falconiformes (Fam. Accipitridae (part)) |
Griffon
Vulture soaring
Vultures are scavenging birds, feeding
mostly on the carcasses of dead animals. Vultures are found in every continent
except Antarctica and Oceania.
A particular characteristic
of many vultures is a bald head, devoid of feathers. This is likely because a
feathered head would become spattered with blood and other fluids, and thus be
difficult to keep clean. This feature also allows quick cleaning in a nearby
river.
A group of vultures is
occasionally called a venue in literature. When circling in the air, a
group of vultures is called a kettle. The word Geier from old English
does not have a precise meaning in ornithology and can refer to a vulture as in
some poetry.
ClassificationVultures are classified
into two groups: Old World vultures and New World vultures. The similarities
between the two groups are due to convergent evolution rather than a close
relationship.
Old
World vultures
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.
New
World vultures
The New World vultures and condors
found in warm and temperate areas of the Americas are not closely related to
the superficially similar Accipitridae, but belong in the family Cathartidae,
which is quite close to the storks. Several species have a good sense of smell,
unusual for raptors.
Feeding
Some
members of both the old and new world vultures have an unfeathered neck and
head, shown as radiating heat in this thermographic image.
Vultures seldom attack
healthy animals, but may kill the wounded or sick. Vast numbers have been seen
upon battlefields. They gorge themselves when prey is abundant, till 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. They can eat
rotten flesh containing anthrax, botulism, and cholera bacteria, which are
destroyed in the stomach.[citation needed]
Threat
due to diclofenac poisoning
The vulture population in India
and Pakistan has declined by up to 95% recently in the past decade, and two or
three of the species of vulture in South Asia are nearing extinction. This has
been caused by the practice of giving working farm animals diclofenac, which is
a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) with anti-inflammatory and pain
killing actions. Diclofenac administration keeps animals that are ill or in
pain working on the land for longer, but, if the ill animals die, their
carcasses contain diclofenac. Farmers leave the dead animals out in the open,
relying on vultures to tidy up. Diclofenac present in carcass flesh is eaten by
the vultures, but unfortunately vultures are very sensitive to diclofenac and
suffer kidney failure, visceral gout, and death as a result of diclofenac poisoning.
The decline in vultures has
led to hygiene problems in India as carcasses of dead animals now tend to rot,
or be eaten by rats or wild dogs, rather than be tidied up by vultures. Rabies
among these scavengers is a major health threat. India has the world's highest
rate of rabies.
The decline in vultures
causes particular problems for certain communities, such as the Parsi, who
practice sky burials, where the human dead are put on the top of Towers of
Silence and are eaten by vultures, leaving only dry bones.
Meloxicam (another NSAID)
has been found to be harmless to vultures and should prove an acceptable
alternative to diclofenac. The Government of India banned diclofenac, but it
continues to be sold over a year later and is still a problem in other parts of
the world [1].
Vultures in culture
Ancient Egypt
In Southern Africa, the
name for a Nubian vulture is synonymous with the term applied to lovers,
because these vultures are always seen in pairs, mother and child remaining
closely bonded together. Pairing, bonding, protecting, and loving are essential
attributes associated with the vulture's size and its ability to soar high up
in the sky. The Egyptians considered the vulture an excellent mother, and its
wide wingspan was seen as all-encompassing and providing a protective cover to
its infants. The vulture hieroglyph
was the uniliteral sign
used for the glottal sound (3) including words such as mother, prosperous,
grandmother, and ruler
Western
culture
In contrast to many other
birds of prey, vultures have often been considered repulsive in Western
culture, due to their association with rotting flesh and death. Sensationalistic
journalists looking for news about bloody crimes are sometimes called vultures.
Financial investors who look for indebted companies or countries to buy securities
at low prices are known as vulture funds. Lawyers who profit off death such as inheritance,
wrongful death, or life insurance lawyers, may also be called vultures. A
prominent Spider-Man supervillain is known as the Vulture
References
- Ferguson-Lees, Christie, Franklin, Mead
and Burton Raptors of the World ISBN 0713680261
- Grimmett, Inskipp and Inskipp, Birds of
India ISBN 0-691-04910-6
- Hilty, Birds of Venezuela, ISBN
0-7136-6418-5
- Ian Sinclair, Phil Hockey and Warwick
Tarboton, SASOL Birds of Southern Africa (Struik 2002) ISBN
1-86872-721-1
- NSAID effects on vultures (BBC website)
- "India's Vultures Fall Prey to a Drug
in the Cattle They Feed On", New York Times, Amelia Gentleman, March
28, 2006.
Vultures are classified
into two groups: Old World vultures and New World vultures. The similarities
between the two groups are due to convergent evolution rather than a close
relationship.
Old
World vultures
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.
New
World vultures
The New World vultures and condors
found in warm and temperate areas of the Americas are not closely related to
the superficially similar Accipitridae, but belong in the family Cathartidae,
which is quite close to the storks. Several species have a good sense of smell,
unusual for raptors.
Feeding
Some
members of both the old and new world vultures have an unfeathered neck and
head, shown as radiating heat in this thermographic image.
Vultures seldom attack
healthy animals, but may kill the wounded or sick. Vast numbers have been seen
upon battlefields. They gorge themselves when prey is abundant, till 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. They can eat
rotten flesh containing anthrax, botulism, and cholera bacteria, which are
destroyed in the stomach.[citation needed]
Threat
due to diclofenac poisoning
The vulture population in India
and Pakistan has declined by up to 95% recently in the past decade, and two or
three of the species of vulture in South Asia are nearing extinction. This has
been caused by the practice of giving working farm animals diclofenac, which is
a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) with anti-inflammatory and pain
killing actions. Diclofenac administration keeps animals that are ill or in
pain working on the land for longer, but, if the ill animals die, their
carcasses contain diclofenac. Farmers leave the dead animals out in the open,
relying on vultures to tidy up. Diclofenac present in carcass flesh is eaten by
the vultures, but unfortunately vultures are very sensitive to diclofenac and
suffer kidney failure, visceral gout, and death as a result of diclofenac poisoning.
The decline in vultures has
led to hygiene problems in India as carcasses of dead animals now tend to rot,
or be eaten by rats or wild dogs, rather than be tidied up by vultures. Rabies
among these scavengers is a major health threat. India has the world's highest
rate of rabies.
The decline in vultures
causes particular problems for certain communities, such as the Parsi, who
practice sky burials, where the human dead are put on the top of Towers of
Silence and are eaten by vultures, leaving only dry bones.
Meloxicam (another NSAID)
has been found to be harmless to vultures and should prove an acceptable
alternative to diclofenac. The Government of India banned diclofenac, but it
continues to be sold over a year later and is still a problem in other parts of
the world [1].
Vultures in culture
Ancient Egypt
In Southern Africa, the
name for a Nubian vulture is synonymous with the term applied to lovers,
because these vultures are always seen in pairs, mother and child remaining
closely bonded together. Pairing, bonding, protecting, and loving are essential
attributes associated with the vulture's size and its ability to soar high up
in the sky. The Egyptians considered the vulture an excellent mother, and its
wide wingspan was seen as all-encompassing and providing a protective cover to
its infants. The vulture hieroglyph
|
was the uniliteral sign
used for the glottal sound (3) including words such as mother, prosperous,
grandmother, and ruler
Western
culture
In contrast to many other
birds of prey, vultures have often been considered repulsive in Western
culture, due to their association with rotting flesh and death. Sensationalistic
journalists looking for news about bloody crimes are sometimes called vultures.
Financial investors who look for indebted companies or countries to buy securities
at low prices are known as vulture funds. Lawyers who profit off death such as inheritance,
wrongful death, or life insurance lawyers, may also be called vultures. A
prominent Spider-Man supervillain is known as the Vulture
References
- Ferguson-Lees, Christie, Franklin, Mead
and Burton Raptors of the World ISBN 0713680261
- Grimmett, Inskipp and Inskipp, Birds of
India ISBN 0-691-04910-6
- Hilty, Birds of Venezuela, ISBN
0-7136-6418-5
- Ian Sinclair, Phil Hockey and Warwick
Tarboton, SASOL Birds of Southern Africa (Struik 2002) ISBN
1-86872-721-1
- NSAID effects on vultures (BBC website)
- "India's Vultures Fall Prey to a Drug
in the Cattle They Feed On", New York Times, Amelia Gentleman, March
28, 2006.
Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Vulture&action=history