THE BLACK VULTURE. 



505 



a dull black. The head and part of the neck are destitute 

 of feathers, wrinkled, and sprinkled with a few black hairs. 

 The throat is of a yellowish tint. 



It flies high, sweeping through the air with a beautifully 

 easy motion, and is generally found in the neighbourhood of 

 fresh water. 



The black vultures are gregarious, brought together appar- 



1. THE BLACK VULTURE. 2. THE KING VULTURE. 



ently by the pleasure they seem to have in society rather 

 than by the attraction of a common prey. Darwin describes 

 seeing flocks of them on a fine day at a great height, each 

 bird wheeling round and round without closing its wings, and 

 performing the most graceful evolutions. 



