Black Vulture education please

[turtlebug]

So our huge White Oak was struck by lightning and died. No we didn't cut it down, even dead, we still have wildlife using it and it posed no hazard. It quickly became a Vulture roost, mainly Turkey Buzzards. I had one Black Vulture that would come and stay for days on end. When Covid hit and people stopped traveling, there wasn't any road kill and the Vultures started staying and eating the cat food for the ferals. No biggie, we share. The Turkey Buzzards have gone and the one Black Vulture stayed. She started following me around and talking to me a bit and wasn't scared of me. Live and let live, only problem I've really had is a HUGE raccoon who eats too much and started sleeping on my porch.

My Black Vulture started disappearing for days at a time and then coming back. Well a few days ago, apparently "she" showed back up, with I guess, her baby? He's actually larger than her but has the fuzzy head and I've yet to see him fly. He's ALWAYS on the ground and she's still feeding him. I tried to scare him to see if he even could fly and he just sort of flapped and bounced. She's coming to me for food now I guess so she can feed him. Is it normal for her to still be feeding her baby at this stage and for him to be so dependent on her?

I'm not a bird person but I've grown fond of having them around. My worry is something is wrong with him and maybe I should call someone I know who works in conjunction with the Auburn Raptor Rehab? I don't want to make them dependent on me but I'm starting to think there's an issue for the "baby" to be as large as he is and still not flying. When I came home from work last night, they were sitting under another oak tree resting. She won't leave him and I've yet to go a day without seeing them walk around our land, but never fly anywhere.

If this is normal, I'll leave them alone, they're welcome to stay. If it's not then I can try and get them him/them some help I guess. Anyone know Vulture behavior? Thanks.

 

[RedHills]

https://avianreport.com/black-vulture-nesting-eggs-chicks-incubation-fledgling-care-of-young/

 

[turtlebug]

https://avianreport.com/black-vulture-nesting-eggs-chicks-incubation-fledgling-care-of-young/

Thanks, I'd say this little guy is definitely over the average age of his first flight. Maybe he's a late bloomer. He's lost all of his down/fuzzy except for his head. He's sleek and shiny. Based on that, I'll keep an eye on them and give them a bit more time. They're meshing well with the cats and making themselves at home and quite comfortable.

 

[JustUs4All]

Natural garbage disposal. I like it.

 

[WOODIE13]

Never knew they were a ground nesting bird.

 

[Anvil Head]

Don't mess with the "Garbage Man", buzzards and possums work hard to keep our world clean. Odd the young one isn't flying yet, but give him time. He'll figure it out.

 

[DannyW]

Never knew they were a ground nesting bird.

Me either. It's odd that I've never seen a nest with all the tramping around I have done.

Learn something new every day.

 

[Nicodemus]

Me either. It's odd that I've never seen a nest with all the tramping around I have done.

Learn something new every day.

They prefer hollow trees big enough that they can fit in, ledges, and such. These days tower deer stands, old barns and abandoned houses is where they generally nest. And where they nest, they make a mess like you would not believe.

As for the one Lea is talking about in the first post, when Mama gets tired of feeding it, it`ll go on its way. As for people feeding them, I wouldn`t do it.

 

[specialk]

had a flock hanging around the house a few years ago, the did about a thousand dollars damage to the rubber moulding on my car and truck....watched them while they were pulling it off around the windshield.....sit on top of them too and scratched the roofs.....

 

[WOODIE13]

They prefer hollow trees big enough that they can fit in, ledges, and such. These days tower deer stands, old barns and abandoned houses is where they generally nest. And where they nest, they make a mess like you would not believe.

As for the one Lea is talking about in the first post, when Mama gets tired of feeding it, it`ll go on its way. As for people feeding them, I wouldn`t do it.

Might be why I haven't seen them around here nesting with all the cliffs and rock outcroppings.

 

[KKrueger]

Came face to face with one in a crawlspace one time. Took a me a moment to realize what I was seeing. It was in the full on fuzzy stage. Prior to that I didn't know they were ground nesting but that open crawlspace on a foreclosed house must have been the perfect nesting site.

 

[bany]

Someone wanted big openings in the shooting houses. wasn't long before the vultures moved in to nest on the office chairs

 

[turtlebug]

Don't mess with the "Garbage Man", buzzards and possums work hard to keep our world clean. Odd the young one isn't flying yet, but give him time. He'll figure it out.

Oh no, not messing with them at all, trying to help them without actually feeding or making them dependent on us. We live in the sticks and there's usually tons of road kill so I like having them around, keeps the smell down. Problem is, there's really been no roadkill to amount to much in the last 2 years. Might have something to do with the 4,000 acres of highway frontage they recently cleared. I have every native vermin and small animal known to Georgia in my yard now at various times during the night since their homes were destroyed for a cattle and goat farm.

They've moved on down to the back of the property, more tree cover and shade, but come back to the house in the evenings. The only thing I've noticed "mama" get upset about is when our gray fox shows up or a neighbor's dog starts barking, she gets a little nervous. The fox doesn't mess with anything, she just seems unnerved by her presence. Otherwise she'll drink and eat from the same bowls as the possums, raccoons, cats and other wildlife. "Baby" still isn't flying and she's still feeding him although I did see him finally eat some cat food this weekend. Maybe he's coming around and will fly soon.

 

[Throwback]

Me either. It's odd that I've never seen a nest with all the tramping around I have done.

Learn something new every day.

There used to be one on joe kurz WMA in an old cabin right beside the road at the Dove field by the river. Scared the bejesus out of me first time I stuck my head in there and they were scratching around. Since then I’ve seen several in old sharecropper shacks in the area. Keep an eye out and you’ll see them

 

[Throwback]

If you ever want to run them off a laser will do the trick as long as it’s not a really bright day

 

[transfixer]

They prefer hollow trees big enough that they can fit in, ledges, and such. These days tower deer stands, old barns and abandoned houses is where they generally nest. And where they nest, they make a mess like you would not believe.

As for the one Lea is talking about in the first post, when Mama gets tired of feeding it, it`ll go on its way. As for people feeding them, I wouldn`t do it.

Yep ! I had a tower stand that was absolutely ruined by a momma buzzard and her two hatchlings, that was last summer, my buddy told me she came back this year to nest in it again, even though I took the roof off the tower stand last year to let the rain wash things out, and left it off thinking she wouldn't want to nest in an open box,, evidently she did

 

[turtlebug]

If you ever want to run them off a laser will do the trick as long as it’s not a really bright day

Nah, I like having them around really. Mama (I call her Antigone) doesn't mess with anything. I get annoyed when she vomits in the bird bath, but other than that, they don't bother with anything. Now if they start messing with my brand new SUV or ripping the shingles off of the new roof, we'll have a problem.

It's pretty cool when what's left of the old White Oak is covered top to bottom in Turkey and Black buzzards. The nosey old bat across the street doesn't come over to chitchat anymore. She has her 26 little yappy dogs that wake me up on the weekends and I have my yard full of vultures that stare at her dogs like a buffet. Works out fine for me.

Baby still isn't flying but he's eating on his own now so hopefully soon.

 

[dwhee87]

Nah, I like having them around really. Mama (I call her Antigone) doesn't mess with anything. I get annoyed when she vomits in the bird bath, but other than that, they don't bother with anything. Now if they start messing with my brand new SUV or ripping the shingles off of the new roof, we'll have a problem.

It's pretty cool when what's left of the old White Oak is covered top to bottom in Turkey and Black buzzards. The nosey old bat across the street doesn't come over to chitchat anymore. She has her 26 little yappy dogs that wake me up on the weekends and I have my yard full of vultures that stare at her dogs like a buffet. Works out fine for me.

Baby still isn't flying but he's eating on his own now so hopefully soon.

I've got a 60 or so foot tall dead pine that has no bark on it, so it's bleached white, at the edge of the driveway. Far enough away from everything that if it falls, it won't hit anything. That thing gets covered up with buzzards about once a week. Sight to see.