Turkey buzzard!

[mnhtnbb]

I was sitting at my desk and two great big turkey buzzards flew in and landed on a tree on our back hill. We see them
flying overhead all the time, but I've never seen one land. Grabbed the camera and sneaked out on the deck--crouching
on my poor arthritic knees--and got these two shots (the same bird) before they both flew away.

Looking at me:

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Looking away from me:

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[CaliforniaPeggy]

1. Nicely done, my dear mnhtnbb!

It's a huge bird!

I hope your knees survived!

[mnhtnbb]

2. Peggy, I was trying to stay low creeping out on the deck

and oh, my, I felt those knees!

[NV Whino]

3. Nice shots.

[hunter]

4. I love your photos and I love these birds.

Much like dogs, individual vultures have definite personalities. Some are generally playful, some are cranky, some are aggressive, and some are more relaxed.

[Curmudgeoness]

5. Great photos.

I feel for your knees. But the shots are so cool....hope you feel it was worth it.

Now, just hope that they don't decide to stay close to your house.

[mnhtnbb]

8. We see them soaring overhead a lot. We're in--as you can tell--a fairly wooded area

with lots of squirrels and chipmunks and smaller birds and undoubtedly mice.
Great hunting ground. We also have red tailed hawks, northern harriers, and
owls. Big birds of prey--but these vultures are the biggest!

[Curmudgeoness]

10. I live right in town

and I have been seeing a lot of Turkey Vultures flying around here. I had never seen them in town until the past couple of years. Since I have lots of huge trees, I am just hoping that they are not looking to nest right here.

Also, Turkey Vultures do not "hunt" live prey. Not that I don't think there aren't a lot of dead animals around, especially after our brutal winter.

A little tidbit about Turkey Vultures---they are one of the few birds who have shown that they have a good sense of smell. Experiments have put dead carcasses in boxes so that sight is not a factor, and they will show up circling and landing on the box. Also, they are sometimes used as a way to find a natural gas leak, since the odor from the natural gas seem to attract them. They will circle around gas leaks and can be seen from far away so that it narrows down the search for leaks. Notice that I love Turkey Vultures?

[Binkie The Clown]

6. To suffer for our art is noble.

[mnhtnbb]

7. LOL. It wasn't quite as bad as this poor guy!

[CrispyQ]

9. What a fabulous creature!