208 



The Falcon-like Birds 



on the upper part of the breast. The adult female lacks the comb, the wattles 

 are smaller or wanting, there is less white on the wings, and the dark colors are 

 duller than in the male." - BARROWS. 



The Condor is found principally in the Peruvian and Chilean Andes, but it 

 also ranges as far north as Bogota, and south to the mouth of the Rio Nigro on 

 the east coast of Patagonia. According to the earlier observers, it was described 

 as frequenting the loftiest peaks of the Cordilleras, reaching even the height of 

 the vast Chimborazo, but later writers deny the truth of this, and state that it 



rarely if ever ascends above 

 16,000 feet, while the usual 

 range is the zone lying be- 

 tween 9000 and 1 5,000 feet. 

 The story of its ascending 

 to these vast heights and 

 then suddenly dropping in 

 a few seconds to the level 

 of the plains is more or 

 less of an exaggeration, as 

 are many of the accounts 

 of its size and ferocity 

 which early found their 

 way into current belief. 

 Thus a spread of wing of 

 thirty feet to forty feet 

 was not an uncommon 

 estimate, but the clearness 

 of the atmosphere and the 

 absence of standards of 

 comparison perhaps ac- 

 count for this erroneous 



impression, which even Humboldt was hardly proof against. As he saw them 

 sitting on the lofty summits of the crags they "appeared truly gigantic," but 

 in reality were less than four feet in length. So, also, the accounts of their 

 killing sheep or even children and carrying them away to be devoured must be 

 relegated to the chapter of myth and superstition, for the structure of the feet 

 precludes the possibility of their grasping or carrying heavy burdens. They 

 cannot even perch well on trees, but prefer a rocky ledge for a resting place. 



The Condor feeds largely on carrion, but is also fond of fresh meat and may 

 occasionally kill old, very young, or injured animals, of goats, sheep, or does. 

 Like the other Vultures, they gorge themselves with food when opportunity offers, 

 and at such times are easily approached and lassoed by the Guachos. "The 

 Indians who live in the high mountains often catch Condors by digging a hole 

 in the ground sufficiently large for a man to hide in, over which they place a 

 cow's hide, leaving only a small part uncovered down one side. Near this they 

 place the carcase or part of an animal, and the man in hiding secures the Condors 



FIG. 71. King Vulture, Gypagus papa. 



