Attacked by a Wounded Griffon 405 
came upon the poor bird lying in an open patch with a broken 
wing. The instant she saw me, she rose up and made one 
spring, and before I could parry her advance seized my arm near 
the shoulder in her powerful beak, tearing a hole in both coat 
and shirt and inflicting an unpleasant wound, and repeating the 
attack with great determination before I could despatch her. 
It has ever been a marvel to travellers and naturalists how and 
where the immense numbers of Vultures seen in the countries they 
inhabit can find food enough. It is no uncommon sight in southern 
Spain to see eighty or more collected around a single dead beast. 
Not long since a cow died during the night close to my dwelling, 
and next morning there were seventy Griffons ready to commence 
work upon it. Small wonder that, with such a ravenous throng 
ever ready to perform the funeral obsequies, it takes but a short 
time for the carcase of horse or cow to disappear. On the other 
hand I shall never understand why a body is at times left untouched 
for weeks by the Vultures, though this is so. One of the most 
curious gatherings of Vultures I have seen was a large party in 
waiting on a drowned pig which lay some few yards from the shore 
of a lake, half-stranded in the shallows. First one and then another 
Griffon would attempt to alight upon it, when it naturally rolled 
over, dislodging the first comer, whose place was quickly taken by 
asecond. At times the birds engaged in a furious duel over the 
carcass, beating the water into foam with their huge wings and 
giving vent to frantic twitterings, a curious call for so large and 
savage a bird, 
When not in search of food, Griffons commonly collect in parties 
of from ten to thirty and perch on the summit of some crag, whence 
they can keep a good look out. Should the weather be wet 
and wild, they are much addicted to roosting in some big cavern 
among the sierras. In windy weather they collect in the more 
sheltered valleys and sit on the top of the cork-trees, often only 
