CONCERNING VULTURES 
197 
as one might imagine, owing to the fact that 
they are very heavy sleepers. 
Describing the flight of the condor, the 
previously mentioned authority states: 
“ Except when rising from the ground, I do 
not recollect ever having seen one of these 
birds flap its wings. Near Lima I watched 
several for nearly half an hour, without once 
taking off my eyes: they moved in large 
curves, sweeping in circles, descending and 
ascending without giving a single flap.” 
Many sensational tales have been written 
about condors picking up children with their 
feet and then flying away with them, but as 
their hindermost toes are extremely small, 
and the whole foot has comparatively little 
grasping power, such an accomplishment is 
quite beyond their powers to achieve. 
Another American species, of more than 
usual interest because it is now almost extinct, 
is the Californian vulture. It was never very 
plentiful in its haunts, and its decimation was 
brought about by cattle-owners putting down 
poisoned meat for the purpose of killing animals 
that preyed upon their flocks. 
Mention must also be made of the turkey- 
vulture, or turkey-buzzard as it is usually 
called in North America, a species that is more 
widely distributed than any other New World 
