Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2014/03/31
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Hi Luggers, First some information from Wikipedia: "These are large vultures, noticeably outsizing the closely related White-backed Vulture, with which they often co-occur in the wild. Adults are 85 to 103 cm (33 to 41 in) long, with a wingspan of 2.26 to 2.6 metres (7.4 to 8.5 ft), and a weight that ranges from 6.4 to 9 kg (14 to 20 lb). Both genders look alike: mottled brown or black overall with a whitish-brown underbelly and thin, dirty-white fluff covering the head and neck. The base of the neck has a white collar, the eye is yellow or amber, the crop patch deep brown. Silent as a rule, they become vocal at their nest and when at a carcass, squealing a great deal. R?ppell's Vultures are very social, roosting, nesting, and gathering to feed in large flocks. They can travel fast when needed, cruising at as much as 35 kilometres per hour (22 mph), and will fly as far as 150 kilometres (93 mi) from a nest site to find food. R?ppell's Vultures commonly fly at altitudes as high as 6,000 metres (20,000 ft). The birds have a specialized variant of the hemoglobin alphaD subunit; this protein has a great affinity for oxygen, which allows the species to absorb oxygen efficiently despite the low partial pressure in the upper troposphere. A R?ppell's Vulture was confirmed to have been ingested by a jet engine of an airplane flying overAbidjan, C?te d'Ivoire on November 29, 1973 at an altitude of 11,300 m (37,000 ft). During August 2010 a R?ppell's Vulture escaped a bird of prey site in Scotland, prompting warnings to pilots in the area to watch carefully due to the danger of collision. R?ppell's Vultures have several adaptations to their diet and are specialized feeders even among the Old World vultures of Africa. They have an especially powerful build and, after the most attractive soft parts of a carcass have been consumed, they will continue with the hide, and even the bones, gorging themselves until they can barely fly. They have backward-pointing spines on the tongue to help remove meat from bone. Despite their size, power and adaptations, they are not the most dominant vulture in their range, which is considered to be the even larger Lappet-faced Vulture. They were declared an endangered species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature in 2012." They have nasty personalities which suits their ugly looks. Here they are fighting: <http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Tanza2014/Vulturefightw.jpg.html> And here is a series on the landing approach which I found so fascinating: Wings back http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Tanza2014/VultLandWgBkw.jpg.html Wings forward http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Tanza2014/VultLandWgForw.jpg.html Wings forward again http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Tanza2014/VultLndWgFor1w.jpg.html Ready for touch down http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Tanza2014/VultureLanding2w.jpg.html All taken with the XT 1 and the 50 - 200 zoom using continuous AF. Please look large, C&C always welcome Howard >