In the News - January 2008
What's in a name? Flying birds cause a 'buzz'
HOPE, Ark. - A recent question from the public set Gerald Alexander off to do
some research. Someone wanted to know about buzzards, and the veteran Hempstead
County extension agent was stumped. County agents are jacks of all trades and
are highly trained, but buzzard questions are a little far afield for most
agents.
Alexander proudly reports that he found the answer to the question and dug up
some interesting information to boot.
"When you use the term buzzard in reference to the large carrion-eating birds
we are all familiar with, we are using it incorrectly," he reports. "The term
buzzard actually refers to a family of hawks found in England. England doesn't
have vultures, so the English pioneers who came to the North American continent
wrongly called the flying birds they saw buzzards, and the name is still used
today."
The correct name for them is vulture, Alexander says. In the past 20 years,
DNA evidence has revealed that the seven species of vultures found in the
Americas is different from the 15 species of vulture found in Europe, Asia and
Africa.
Old and New World vultures are similar in some respects, but different in
others. Old World vultures have strong feet that are designed to grasp like
their ancestral raptor ancestors, while the New World vultures cannot grasp. New
World vultures can run along the ground, while Old World vultures can only hop
around.
"In Arkansas, we find two species of vultures, the turkey vulture and the
black vulture," Alexander notes. "Both species have a common carrion-based diet,
and both will also eat other foods. On occasion, both species will also attack
young and helpless animals. Neither species vocalizes much beyond a soft hiss or
groan."
The turkey vulture is found throughout North America, Alexander says. It's
one of North
America's largest birds of prey, measuring about 32 inches in length with a
wingspread of 6 feet. Its identifying characteristics include a brown-black
color with a bald, red head, white bill and
yellow feet. It has excellent vision, and, unlike most birds, a keen sense of
smell that's three times more sensitive than that of the black vulture.
In flight, the silver-gray flight feathers contrast with the black feathers
of the underwing, and its tail extends beyond its feet. Once aloft, it holds its
wings in a V angle while seeking rising thermals of warm air it can ride for
hours. It conserves energy by rocking from side to side without ever flapping
its wings.
"Incredibly, vultures have been seen as high as 20,000 feet riding thermals
of warm air," Alexander says.
The black vulture is found in the southern United States, but it's constantly
expanding its range farther north. It's smaller than the turkey vulture,
measuring 22-27 inches in length with a wingspan of 4½ feet to 5 feet. It has
black feathers with a bald, gray head.
In flight, he says, the tips of the black vulture's wings are a
silvery-white, and its tail is short. Because its sense of smell isn't as acute
as the turkey vulture, the black vulture will often watch the turkey vulture and
follow it down to a meal. The black vulture has a short, choppy wing beat.
The turkey vulture is gentle and non-aggressive compared to the black
vulture.
Alexander says vultures might make a pretty good pet, except for some of
their disgusting personal habits such as eating food that smells to high heaven and
regurgitating food with an offensive odor that will deter most predators.
The Cooperative Extension Service is part of the U of A Division of
Agriculture.
January 18, 2008
Media Contact: Lamar James
Extension Communications Specialist
U of A Division of Agriculture
Cooperative Extension Service
(501) 671-2187 or (501) 753-0207
ljames@uaex.edu
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