Home Application Download FAQ
English
English
繁體中文
日本語
Español
Français
Deutsch
Pусский
Português
Italiano
한국어
Nederlands
العربية

Black Vulture

A species of American Black Vultures, Also known as Charleston Buzzard, Black Buzzard, Buzzard
Scientific name : Coragyps atratus Genus : American Black Vultures

Black Vulture, A species of American Black Vultures
Also known as:
Charleston Buzzard, Black Buzzard, Buzzard
Botanical name: Coragyps atratus
Genus: American Black Vultures
Black Vulture (Coragyps atratus) Photo By Francesco Veronesi , used under CC-BY-SA-2.0 /Cropped and compressed from original

Description

Although quite dapper in appearance, the black Vulture's name comes from the Latin vulturus meaning “tearer" and that is just what that hooked beak is for. These birds are highly social, with fierce family loyalty and will share food with relatives and with their young long after the babies have fledged. Because they lack a voice box, their calls are limited to grunts and hisses.
Size
58 - 69 cm
Life Expectancy
16 years
Nest Placement
Cliff
Clutch Size
1 - 3 eggs
Incubation Period
1 brood
Number of Broods
38 - 39 days
Nestling Period
70 - 98 days
Feeding Habits
Black Vulture, a carrion specialist, often soars to locate carcasses or follows Turkey Vultures to feed. While predominantly consuming dead animals like hogs, cattle, and raccoons, black Vulture also eats fish, small live prey (including piglets and calves), and human refuse in landfills or dumpsters, adapting to natural and urban environments.
Habitat
Black Vulture typically inhabit open to semi-open landscapes, often coexisting with human developments. They thrive in various ecosystems, including lowland forests, shrublands, grasslands, and wetlands. Preferring low altitudes, black Vulture are seldom encountered in mountainous regions. The species is remarkably adaptable, foraging in open areas, along roadways, and in pastures, with a range extending from the eastern and southern US to South America. They nest in dense woodlands, favoring tall trees like sycamores, pines, hickories, and oaks for roosting, often near water bodies and terrain that produces updrafts aiding their morning flights.
Nest Behavior
Nesting pairs often return to prior successful sites yearly. Black Vulture lay their eggs directly on the ground within these chosen cavities. After laying, they demonstrate strong parental investment in incubating the eggs and raising the young, although specific timings and number of broods per year can vary.
Nest Characteristics
Black Vulture typically select dark and sheltered sites for nesting, such as caves, hollow trees, abandoned structures, or dense cover like brush piles and thickets. Their nests lack a constructed structure, consisting merely of a bare substrate without additional materials.
Dite type
Scavenger

General Info

Sounds

Call
Recording location: Venezuela

Behavior

Black Vulture exhibit monogamous relationships and maintain enduring family bonds. These birds engage in daily communal roosting, forming flocks where information about food sources is exchanged. Within these gatherings, black Vulture establish foraging groups and adults reunite with their offspring, assisting them with food for months post-fledging. They employ aggressive tactics to protect food sources and roosting spaces from non-family members. Black Vulture's behavior at carcasses is hierarchical, often yielding to larger scavengers.

Distribution Area

The black vulture has a Nearctic and Neotropic distribution. Its range includes the mid-Atlantic States, the southernmost regions of the Midwestern United States, the southern United States, Mexico, Central America and most of South America. In South America, its range stretches to Peru, central Chile and Uruguay. It also is found as a vagrant on the islands of the Caribbean.

Species Status

Not globally threatened.
Black Vulture (Coragyps atratus) Black Vulture (Coragyps atratus) Photo By Francesco Veronesi , used under CC-BY-SA-2.0 /Cropped and compressed from original
Download Picture Bird
Identify any bird by photo or sound in seconds
Cookie Management Tool
In addition to managing cookies through your browser or device, you can change your cookie settings below.
Necessary Cookies
Necessary cookies enable core functionality. The website cannot function properly without these cookies, and can only be disabled by changing your browser preferences.
Analytical Cookies
Analytical cookies help us to improve our application/website by collecting and reporting information on its usage.
Cookie Name Source Purpose Lifespan
_ga Google Analytics These cookies are set because of our use of Google Analytics. They are used to collect information about your use of our application/website. The cookies collect specific information, such as your IP address, data related to your device and other information about your use of the application/website. Please note that the data processing is essentially carried out by Google LLC and Google may use your data collected by the cookies for own purposes, e.g. profiling and will combine it with other data such as your Google Account. For more information about how Google processes your data and Google’s approach to privacy as well as implemented safeguards for your data, please see here. 1 Year
_pta PictureThis Analytics We use these cookies to collect information about how you use our site, monitor site performance, and improve our site performance, our services, and your experience. 1 Year
Cookie Name
_ga
Source
Google Analytics
Purpose
These cookies are set because of our use of Google Analytics. They are used to collect information about your use of our application/website. The cookies collect specific information, such as your IP address, data related to your device and other information about your use of the application/website. Please note that the data processing is essentially carried out by Google LLC and Google may use your data collected by the cookies for own purposes, e.g. profiling and will combine it with other data such as your Google Account. For more information about how Google processes your data and Google’s approach to privacy as well as implemented safeguards for your data, please see here.
Lifespan
1 Year

Cookie Name
_pta
Source
PictureThis Analytics
Purpose
We use these cookies to collect information about how you use our site, monitor site performance, and improve our site performance, our services, and your experience.
Lifespan
1 Year
Marketing Cookies
Marketing cookies are used by advertising companies to serve ads that are relevant to your interests.
Cookie Name Source Purpose Lifespan
_fbp Facebook Pixel A conversion pixel tracking that we use for retargeting campaigns. Learn more here. 1 Year
_adj Adjust This cookie provides mobile analytics and attribution services that enable us to measure and analyze the effectiveness of marketing campaigns, certain events and actions within the Application. Learn more here. 1 Year
Cookie Name
_fbp
Source
Facebook Pixel
Purpose
A conversion pixel tracking that we use for retargeting campaigns. Learn more here.
Lifespan
1 Year

Cookie Name
_adj
Source
Adjust
Purpose
This cookie provides mobile analytics and attribution services that enable us to measure and analyze the effectiveness of marketing campaigns, certain events and actions within the Application. Learn more here.
Lifespan
1 Year
Download