Stats

Lifespan: 20-30 yrs
Size: Large
Diet: Carnivore
Activity: Diurnal
Social: Solitary
Biome: Tropical rainforest
Range: Central and South America
Movement: Flight
Breeding: Egg-laying
Defense: Speed
Status: Uncommon

About

The King Vulture is a large New World vulture unmistakable for its swirling bare head of yellow, orange, red, and purple skin. Unlike most vultures it cannot smell carrion and instead follows smaller Turkey Vultures to a carcass, then displaces them with its size and powerful beak.

Life cycle

1.
egg
One or two eggs are incubated on a high stick nest or cliff ledge, guarded closely by the pair.
2.
hatchling
A downy hatchling is fed torn meat by its parents and grows quickly in a high nest.
3.
juvenile
A feathered juvenile fledges from the nest, learning to soar and to make its first kills.
4.
adult
Fully grown, hunting on its own with adult plumage.

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Taxonomy

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Cathartiformes
Family: Cathartidae
Genus: Sarcoramphus
Species: Sarcoramphus papa