3 oo THE BIRDS 



the feet are clumsy, and the claws straight and blunt and not 

 fitted for grasping: The head and long neck are usually bare, 

 though sometimes covered with short stubbly down, the naked 

 skin being often brightly coloured ; the eyes are prominent, and 

 the birds have remarkably keen sight; 



In finding the carrion upon which they feed, Vultures are said 

 to be guided by sight and not by smell. No sooner does one 

 swoop down upon a carcass than his action is seen and under- 

 stood by others far and near, and before long a greedy crowd will 

 gather on the scene to quarrel and fight over the find until every 

 morsel is consumed. Then, gorged with food, they sit about 

 with drooping wing in a stupid and half-dazed condition, and at 

 such times are easily captured. 



The Condor of the Peruvian and Chilian Andes is one of the 

 largest of flying birds.- It is about four feet in length, and has 

 a wing expanse of nine or ten feet. It not only feeds on carrion, 

 but will attack lambs, goats, deer, and old, feeble horses. The 

 King Vulture is very like the condor, but is distinguished by a 

 small fleshy crest on the base of the beak and the bright colours 

 of the skin of the head and neck ; the dominating tone is orange- 

 red, and near the ears are patches of blue, while the bill is orange 

 and black. It is found chiefly near the coast, haunting woods in 

 the neighbourhood of marshes or rivers. 



The Old World Vultures are very similar in habits and appear- 

 ance to the condor tribe, but from certain anatomical differences 

 they are placed in a separate family. They vary greatly in size, 

 the Egyptian Vulture (Neophron percnopterus) being about the size 

 of a crow,* while the Great Eared Vulture (Otogyps auricularis) of 

 Africa almost equals the condor in size. The Griffon Vulture 

 (Gyps fulvus), a native of Spain, India, and Northern Africa, occa- 

 sionally visits Germany and Poland, and is said once to have 

 appeared in England. It may be seen motionless on the rocks 

 in the daytime basking in the warmth of the sun, or circling 

 overhead with a strong easy flight, occasionally soaring aloft until 

 it is but a mere speck in the sky. 



The Egyptian Vulture, called from its frequent appearance in 

 Egyptian hieroglyphs " Pharaoh's Hen," and in South Africa, 

 where it is a winter visitor, the "White Crow," is protected by 

 law in Egypt, and acts as a scavenger in the streets, walking fear- 



