﻿166 Bird -Lore 



this rate the whole feast is consumed in an hour or two, when the Vultures 

 go back to the fence-posts and sit in silence for the remainder of the day. 

 Vultures have a limited vocabulary and make their sounds only when feed- 

 ing. I heard them make only two different sounds, — a hiss and a low guff, 

 guff, guff, like a dog barking in the distance. 



The rainfall in eastern Nicaragua is something tremendous, and its effect 

 on the habits of the Vulture is r irked. It often rains several times a day, 

 though seldom more than an hour at a time, after which it clears off and the 

 sun comes out. During the rain the Vrltures sit about on the ground or on 

 fence-posts, with their wings drawn in close to their bodies and their backs 

 and tails forming almost vertical lines. In this way they present little surface 

 to the rain and drain the water off at the tip of the tail and bill. I have 

 sometimes seen them, when caught by a sudden shower, while walking about 

 the grounds, rush underneath a small alligator-pear tree which formed a 

 thick, dense shelter. Here they would stand in a circle about the trunk till 

 the rain had stopped. As soon as the sun comes out, the Vultures spread 

 themselves out to dry. This is done by turning the back to the sun and 

 spreading the wings and tail to the fullest extent. I have sometimes seen 

 twenty or thirty in the yard with their wings spread in this fashion. At such 

 times they show off admirably the white quills in the primary wing-feathers. 

 Occasionally, in the early morning, I saw a group of Vultures drying the 

 under-surface of their wings and tail, by facing the sun, throwing them for- 

 ward and only half-spreading the wings. 



The Vulture moves rather awkwardly on the ground. For a long time I 

 decided that here was a bird that both hopped and walked. On careful 

 observation, however, I found this was not so. When the Vulture is taking 

 his time about getting around, he moves with a very solemn, sedate walk, 

 carefully placing one foot in front of the other. When he is in a hurry, 

 however, he slightly spreads his wings and indulges in what looks like hop- 

 ping but is really a very one-sided run. At first sight he seems to put both 

 feet on the ground at once, but in reality he puts down the left foot first 

 and takes his long step with the right foot. Perhaps some individuals reverse 

 this, but I failed to find any that did. This method of moving makes their 

 gait a sort of canter which looks very ridiculous. 



Individual Vultures differ greatly from each other in the amount of feather- 

 ing on the back of the neck. Some have nearly the whole neck naked, while 

 in others the feathering extends almost to the crown. Some of the natives 

 told me that this difference was sexual, the males being the ones with the 

 feathered necks. The few observations I made in this line supported this 

 belief. 



I was once fortunate enough to watch the courting of this Vulture. 

 This took place on the ground in the shade of a small lime tree. In a circle 

 in front of the female were three admirers, who, with their wings partly 



