Photography
Related: About this forumTurkey buzzard!
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
(149,612 posts)It's a huge bird!
I hope your knees survived!
mnhtnbb
(31,386 posts)and oh, my, I felt those knees!
NV Whino
(20,886 posts)hunter
(38,311 posts)Much like dogs, individual vultures have definite personalities. Some are generally playful, some are cranky, some are aggressive, and some are more relaxed.
Curmudgeoness
(18,219 posts)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
(31,386 posts)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
(18,219 posts)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?