THE EGYPTIAN VULTURE. 185 



NEOPHRON PERCNOPTERUS 



269. Neophron percnopterus percnopterus (L.) — THE 

 EGYPTIAN VULTURE. 



Vui/tur Perenoptertjs (evident misprint for Percnopterus) Linnaeus, 



Syst. Nat., ed. x, i, p. 87 (1758— Egypt). 



Neophron percnopterus (Linnaeus), Yarrell, 1, p. 6 ; Saunders, p. 313. 



Description. — Adult male and female. Winter and summer.— 

 Chin, throat and crown to back of crown and ear, and a patch in 

 middle of upper-breast bare yellow skin with a few short white 

 plumules on chin, throat and fore-part of head, but back of crown 

 more thickly covered with plumules and short degenerate feathers ; 

 nape and extending round sides of base of neck dark cream to 

 pinkish-buff, feathers elongated, very narrow and pointed (lanceo- 

 late) forming a sort of ruff ; whole of rest of body-feathers, upper 

 and under wing-coverts and tail-feathers white tinged cream which 

 is darkest and richest on mantle, scapulars and upper-breast where 

 sometimes with strong pinkish-buff tinge ; primaries black, outer 

 webs and inner portions of inner webs brownish-grey except at 

 tips, outer webs of inner primaries narrowly edged paler grey, 

 secondaries with distal halves of outer webs pale grey and basal part, 

 tips and inner webs brownish or black, innermost feathers with both 

 webs grey ; primary-coverts black ; innermost greater coverts 

 brown-black ; all rest of coverts as body. This plumage is acquired 

 by complete moult from May to Dec. or Jan. 



Nestling. — -(Not examined.) 



Juvenile. — Fore-head, lores, round eyes, cheeks and chin bare 

 skin with some short tufts of black plumules especially on chin, 

 throat and top of crown much more thickly covered than in adult 

 with short creamy plumules, interspersed with short black feathers ; 

 feathers of neck-ruff shorter than in adult and brown-black tipped 

 buff ; upper -mantle brown-black tipped buff ; lower -mantle and 

 scapulars browner and with longer buff tips which often entirely 

 conceal brown ; back, rump and upper tail-coverts mostly buff, 

 bases of feathers being pale brown ; whole under-parts black-brown, 

 feathers with buff tips of varying length but under tail-coverts 

 as upper tail-coverts buff with pale brown bases ; tail-feathers 

 greyish-brown with long buff tips ; wing-feathers much as in adult 

 but outer webs of inner primaries and secondaries more grey-brown 

 and not so pale grey, and innermost feathers with buff tips ; primary- 

 coverts black ; greater and lesser coverts black-brown with shortish 

 buff tips and median coverts with much longer buff tips. 



First winter. — -Like juvenile. First summer and second 

 winter. — The juvenile body-plumage sometimes commences to 

 moult in March but wings and tail not until later. New plumage 

 like juvenile but upper- and under-parts and wing-coverts brown- 

 black with faint greyish tinge and feathers with only very small buff 

 tips, here and there on under-parts a dull white feather and on 



