Read on Twitter
thread of fun facts about the bearded vulture because ive loved them since i was like 10 and i dont have anything better to do :)
their diet is 80-90% bones and bone marrow!!!! they find picked-over carcasses and drop the bones from 160-490ft to shatter it into swallowable pieces. they even typically have a favorite bone-breaking spot called an ossuary!! they also eat small lizards and turtles :)
their stomach acid has a pH of less than 1, which if u dont know. thats very acidic. they can digest bones in under 24 hours.
their other name is Lammergeier which means "lamb-vulture" in german. its called this because it has a (false) reputation of carrying away lambs, calves, and even children!!! theres no confirmed cases of one ever killing a human though
they have a wingspan of 7.6–9.3ft (2.31–2.83m) and they sometimes use it to batter large animals off cliffs. they also give great hugs
they preen soil stained with iron oxide into their feathers to give them their red hue. its assumed to be a status symbol and usually the biggest and oldest vultures have the brightest colors!! this is obviously a beta vulture, his name is craig
bearded vultures are monogamous and mate once a year, usually laying no more than 3 eggs. sometimes though, bachelor vultures will join an already existing couple and create a polyamorous relationship!! move over i love yall
they can grow up to 4 feet tall and weigh about 10-15 pounds!!!!!!! big birds!!!!!!
the average lifespan of a wild vulture is about 21 years, but in captivity they can live to be up to 45!!!!!!!! grandpa vulture tell us about the war
theres a story that the greek playwright aeschylus had gotten a prophecy to watch out for falling objects and he was killed when a bearded vulture mistook his shiny bald head for a rock and dropped a turtle on it, killing him instantly <3
theres probably more fun facts but this is all i know !!! they r very cool and i love them
