Well it’s been one of those ‘hell weeks’ at work which added to the fact my least favourite day of the year is coming makes this a particularly dreary November. Still it could be worse, I could be an endangered Big Headed Turtle stuck up a tree with this weeks animal…
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Issue #41 Lammergeyer
Kingdom – Animalia
Phylum – Chordata
Class – Aves
Order – Acciptiforms
Family – Acciptireade
Genus – Gypaetus
Species – barbatus
Related Species - Despite being classed as a Vulture, the Lammergeyer and its cousin the Egyptian Vulture (Neophron percnopterus) are genetically distinct from the other birds in this family (1)
Range
The Bone Crusher
Lammergeyers are large birds, even among the vulture family, with a wingspan of over two meters and a weight of five kilograms. What distinguishes them from most vulture species are their feathered heads, a feature absent in most carrion birds, and their well developed feet. Adult Lammergeyers are usually stained red or orange, not from feeding, but from dust bathing in mineral rich mountain soils.
While the majority of its food comes from carrion the Lammergeyer doesn’t readily feed on flesh, but instead prefers bone marrow (being the only bird to regularly feed on the material) which makes up 80% of its diet (2). Unlike other vultures the Lammergeyer actively hunts live prey, with tortoises being one of its preferred targets. Upon catching the tortoise (or a very large bone) the Lammergeyer will drop it repeatedly until it cracks open allowing the bird access to the food inside.
This behaviour is learned through observation, and it may take a young Lammergeyer as long as five years to learn how to reliably crack bone open. While it’s always been scarce Lammergeyers are threatened by power cables as well as the premature removal of carcasses by humans. The majority of populations (save the ones in the Ethiopian Highlands) are declining despite being internationally protected.
Five Fun Lammergeyer Facts
The name Lammergeyer translates from German to Lamb Vulture, so named after the incorrect belief that the bird killed lambs.
The Ancient Greeks knew of the Lammergeyer as well. They named it the Ossiphage or Bone Eater for obvious reasons
One Greek Playwright Aeschylus in particular knew of the bird. Prophesied by the Oracle to die from a house falling on him, Aeschylus made sure to be outside in the countryside on the day of his death. Alas despite his best efforts he was killed when a tortoise fell from the sky onto his head, most likely dropped by a Lammergeyer (3).
Eating bones and tortoises is tough on any animal. To that end the Lammergeyer has the strongest stomach acid of any animal, with a pH of 1-2
In Ancient Persia the shadow of a Lammergeyer passing over you was considered a sign of good luck and future happiness (3)
Bibliography
1 - www.arkive.org
2 -. Conservation of the Bearded Vulture Gypaetus barbatus meridionalis. By Sonja Krüger". Africanraptors.or3
3 - Pollard, J. r. t. (1947). "The Lammergeyer: Comparative Descriptions in Aristotle and Pliny". Greece & Rome16 (46): 23–28.
Picture References
1 -http://cdn2.arkive.org/media/83/834D155E-E66D-48AC-9727-B669465E48E2/Presentation.Large/Lammergeier-landing.jpg
2 - http://www.planetofbirds.com/Master/ACCIPITRIFORMES/Accipitridae/maps/Lammergeier.jpg
3 - http://cdn2.arkive.org/media/FC/FC16FC09-747F-4423-9F5E-BB61BD0C108F/Presentation.Large/Lammergeier-walking-in-snow.jpg
4 - http://birdpictures.pro/wp-content/gallery/lammergeiers/lammergeier-13.jpg
And boom as the Lammergeyer flies over this blog it drops a dead tortoise and hopefully some good fortune as well. Next week we will learn the colour of chemical warfare (hint it’s shocking pink) but until then critic, comment and check out Impurest’s Bestiary of Past Issues
Many Thanks
Impurest Cheese
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