60 
VERTEBRATA. 
TURKEY BUZZARDS. 
iously observed, so far, at least, as it related to tlie vulture, from whose flcsli there arises sucL an 
unsavory odor that we question if all the sweetening processes ever invented could render it palat- 
able to Jew, Pagan, or Christian." 
The turkey-buzzard is two feet long, with six feet expanse of wing ; the liead and neck, for an 
inch and a half below the ears, are covered witb a reddishi, carunculated skin ; above the color is 
black, glossed with green and bronze, with purplish reflections ; beneath it is sooty black. 
The Black Vulture, or Carrion Crow — the TJrubu, of South America, VuUur atratus 
of Wilson — is included in the genus Coraff?/ps, meaning Crow-Vulture, of Le Maout. It is of the 
size of a small turkey, the body being of a shining black ; the skin of the head and neck black 
and wrinkled. This species is even more abundant than the preceding, extending in its range 
from North Carolina to Cape Horn. In the towns and villages of the Southern States, particu- 
larly Charleston and Savannah, they may be seen, either sauntering about tlie streets, sunning 
themselves on the roofs of the bouses and fences, or, if the weather be cold, cowering around the 
tops of the chimneys, to enjoy the benefit of the beat, which to them is a peculiar gratification. 
They are protected by law, or usage ; and may be said to be completely domesticated, being as 
common as the domestic poultry, and equally familiar. The inhabitants arc disgusted with their 
filthy, voracious habits ; but they have a respect paid to them, as scavengers whose labors are 
subservient to the public good. " It sometimes happens," says Wilson, " that, after having gorged 
themselves, these birds vomit down the chimneys, which must be intolerably disgusting, and must 
provoke the ill-will of those whose hospitality is thus requited." ' 
These birds are indolent, and maybe observed in companies, loitering for hours together in one 
place. They do not associate with the turkey-buzzards, and are much darker in their plumage 
than the latter. Their mode of flight also varies ft-om that of the turkey-buzzard : the black vul- 
ture flaps its wings five or six times rapidly, then sails with them extended nearly horizontally ; 
the turkey-buzzard seldom flaps its wings, and, when sailing, they form an angle with the body 
