Bearded Vulture: The Bird That Eats Bones (and Dyes Its Own Feathers)
The bearded vulture is a huge mountain bird that lives on bones. Bone and marrow can make up as much as ninety percent of its diet. It swallows small bones whole, drops big ones onto rocks to smash them, and gets its famous orange color from bathing in iron-rich mud.
Quick Facts
- Scientific name: Gypaetus barbatus
- Also called: Lammergeier
- Wingspan: About 2.5 to 2.85 meters (8 to 9 feet)
- Diet: Roughly 70 to 90 percent bone and marrow
- Where: Mountains of Europe, Africa and Asia; reintroduced to the Alps since 1986
What Does a Bearded Vulture Eat?
Mostly bones. Studies put bone and marrow at roughly seventy to ninety percent of its diet, depending on where it lives. Other scavengers take the meat, and the bearded vulture takes what is left.
Small bones go down whole. Its digestive system is built for this, and strong stomach acid helps break the bone down. Scientists have not directly measured the exact pH, so treat any precise number you see online with caution.
Why Does It Drop Bones on Rocks?
Some bones are too big to swallow. The vulture carries them high into the air, usually in its feet, then drops them onto rocky slopes so they shatter into pieces it can eat. Young birds take practice to get good at it.
Why Is the Bearded Vulture Orange?
The orange-rust color is not made by the bird. Bearded vultures bathe in mud and water rich in iron oxide, which stains the pale feathers on the head, neck and chest. Without that staining, those parts would look pale, while the wings and tail stay dark.
Why they do it is still debated. It may be a signal to other vultures.
Back in the Alps
Bearded vultures were wiped out in the Alps by the early 1900s. A reintroduction program began releasing young birds in Austria in 1986, and today they soar over the Alps again.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do bearded vultures really eat bones?
Yes. Bone and marrow can make up about seventy to ninety percent of their diet.
Why are bearded vultures orange?
They bathe in iron-rich mud, which stains their pale feathers orange.
How big is a bearded vulture?
Its wings span about 2.5 to 2.85 meters, roughly eight to nine feet.
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Sources
- Vulture Conservation Foundation: Bearded vulture: size, diet and range
- Margalida et al. 2019: iron-oxide staining of the feathers
- VCF: Bearded vulture in the Alps: the reintroduction since 1986
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Cover photo: Giles Laurent via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.