Turkey Vultures have increased their presence in southern BC over the last dozen, or so, years. Yet, they are still not so common around here that a sighting doesn’t merit a picture or two. Sunday noon, I watched five Turkey Vultures soaring as they searched for lunch. Occasionally, two were close enough to appear in the same shot.
During the time I watched, they did not find a carcass, but watching them search for one reminded me of one of my favourite puns:
A vulture boards an airplane, carrying two dead raccoons. The stewardess looks at him and says, “I’m sorry, sir, only one carrion allowed per passenger.”
Here are three views of the vultures as they searched for carrion.
Wonderful vulture photos. They soar over our yard everyday here and sometimes land in our yard looking for something to eat.
I love that pun! Excellent!
Robin, you live deep within these vultures’ range; I live near their northern limit, and so the bird is somewhat uncommon. I wish some would land in my yard.
I lived beside the west arm of Kootenay Lake for 30 years, but the first time I saw Turkey Vultures was walking a Texada Island dirt road. They swooped from behind me to land near carrion on the road ahead. For a startled second I thought Pterodactyls had bridged a time portal! Then I realized… Vultures. It wasn’t until I returned to our lodgings that the locals filled me in; they were called “Turkey” Vultures. I have since learned that a good place to see them is East Sooke Park on Vancouver Island during their fall migration. They don’t have a voice box but do grunt and hiss. Facinating creatures, mesmerizing in flight, who play a very useful role in nature! Thanks for the great photos.
Marie, a fascinating paper, Turkey Vultures, in the journal, Wildlife Afield, charts the slow spread over a few decades of this vulture into southern BC. The best places to see the bird around the Lake now are in the open areas at the south and north ends of the Main Lake, and also down the lower Kootenay River towards Castlegar, for it can find carrion in fields more readily than under a forest canopy. Yet, I and others do see it now and then along the West Arm, although it has to compete with the Bald Eagle for carrion on this portion of the Lake.