AVES-VULTURE. 421 



prey, preparing to take possession of it; but perhaps he has himself a suffi- 

 cient power of vision to enable him to discover it. He descends hastily and 

 with a wheeling flight, and his fall directs the other vultures who witness 

 his evolutions, and who no doubt have their instinct sharpened jvith regard 

 to every thing that concerns their food. A concourse of carnivorous birds 

 speedily takes place in the neighborhood of the carcass, sufficient to attract 

 the vultures of the whole district, nearly in the same manner as the dis- 

 turbance created by a number of men running along the streets of a crowded 

 town, attracts the whole population to follow in their train." 



The present species is not met with in the vicinity of the Cape ; but is 

 very common in the interior, especially in the country of Manaquas. It 

 builds its nest in the fissures of the rocks, and the female lays two or rarely 

 three eggs. During the time of incubation the male keeps watch at the 

 entrance of the cavern, and thus renders their retreat easy of detection ; but 

 on the other hand it is always very difficult of access. The interior offers a 

 most disgusting spectacle, and is infected by an insupportable stench. Le 

 Vaillant had eaten of their eggs, which, to use his own expression, are good 

 enough to be made use of. As they live in formidable bands, a single 

 mountain sometimes conceals as many nests as there are cavities fit for 

 their reception. They appear to agree together exceedingly well, for two or 

 three nests are sometimes seen placed side by side in the same cavern. 



KING OF THE VULTURES. i 



This is unquestionably one of the handsomest, although among the 

 smaller species of the vulture family. The only other American vultures, 

 the turkey buzzard, and a second closely allied species, (the black vulture) 

 form a distinct genus nearly related to this, but differing essentially in 

 several important points. It is no doubt in comparison with the two last 

 mentioned birds, that the present has obtained, in the language of all the 

 native tribes to which it is known, the appellation of king of the vultures ; 

 for it is far inferior, both in size and strength, to the gigantic species which 

 are generically associated with it. 



When fully grown, the king of the vultures measures about two feet and 

 a half in total length, and more than twice as much in the expanse of its 

 wings. The hues of its plumage are bright, sharply circumscribed, and 

 strongly contrasting with each other. Round the base of the neck passes a 

 broad ruff of soft downy feathers of a deep ashy gray ; the whole under 

 surface is white, with an occasional tinge of flesh color ; the back and tail 

 coverts are of a bright fawn, which becomes lighter and lighter as the bird 



1 Cathartes Papa, Lin. 



