The daily morning journal and courier., 1902-06-21
NULTURES.

blue sky, a Vulture Sallng on flSld wings, in wide circles, the embodi- | ment of grace, it is more than likely
 that we begin to desire a nearer view, | a closer acquaintance with this won derful creature which can overcome the attraction of gravitation for hours without visible movement of his out stretched pinions. Lucky are we If our desire is never gratified, for in this case qualification certainly means disappointment. On the wing and in the distance, vulture is a beautiful marvellous being, but afoot and at close quarters, it is often an object of disgust and not infreqently very
 offensive to more senses than one.
 Like members of many disgusting
 trades, it is extremely useful to so-
 ciety, and it's value as a scavenger
 has been recognized for thousands of
 years.
 Of the three vultures which inhabit
 North America, two are found in the
 Eastern States. The better known per
 haps is the turkey vulture, commonly
 called turkey buzzard, which may be
 seen in the sky at all hours of the day
 in any of the States from New Jersey
 southward. No one, however, unobser-
 want he may be, can fail to notice this
 great bird, wheeling in tireess flight
 against the southern sky, even if he
 is not sufficiently interested in birds
 to inquire the name of the winged
 sentinel which ever guards the air
 against pollution. The turkey buzzard
 is about thirty inches in length and
 measures over six feet from tip to tip
 of it's outstretched wings. Its head
 and neck are naked and bright red;
 its plumage is glossy black, edged
 with grayish brown. Its nest Is usual-
 ly made in hollow stump or log, or
 on the ground under bush, and often
 consists of nothing but a little decay
 ed wood The eggs are dingy white.
 more or less splashed with chocolate.
 The young are covered With whitish
 donw, and their heads remain downy until the birds are full grown
 Except during the nesting season
 the birds are gregarious, and after sundown they may be seen winging their way to some roasting place.
 which they will occupy together until the morning.
 They are very fond of summing themselves, and they may often be seen spreading out their wings in the sunlight, as though they greatly en- joyed the warmth. In this manner they dry their wet plumage after rainstorm They have wonderful pow CTS of sight, and when sailing far above the earth they keep a bright lookout for dead or dying animals They probably have an acute sense of smell also, to guide them in cases where their prey is hidden from sight. There is no necessity for bury ing dead horses or cattle in the South; they are just dragged aside and the vultures descend and quickly clean the bones At the time an anil mai is killed, there may not be vul- ture in sight, yet in a very short time the carcass will perhaps be hidden be- meath a black company of squabblng gluttons which, if not disturbed, will until every vestige of flesh has For a long time natur- alists could not discover by what sense vultures were attracted to a lying at so great distance that it could neither be seen nor smelled. Even yet the question is not fully understood, but it is now be- lieved that the more distant vultures are guided by the actions of those which are nearer the object of attrac- tion Those within a certain distance can doubtless see the carrion and at once set sail for it. Other vultures farther away, see the nearer ones fly ing in a definite direction, evidently | with an object in view, and follow on the same principle as the tail-enders | run to a fire, Those birds still farther | off, follow in their turn and the result | Is that there is seldom any of the food | wasted. The vultures tear away the | flesh with their bills and gorge them- | selves until they can scarcely fly to | he top of fence. At such times they | night easily be caught in the hands, | out few people would care to capture | such disgusting creatures, especially | IS they have a habit of disgorging | whatever they may have been eating, he moment they are interfered with.
 The black vulture is q heavier bird | than the preceding, but it has not so 1 great a stretch of wing and is there ore less graceful when flying aloft 1t may be distinguished from the tur- Sey buzzard In the field by many oth- IT peculiarities. For example, its lead and neck are black, and it's tail s nearly a third shorter than that of he huzzard. Moreover, it flaps it's wings much oftener when in flight. It . s also more frequently seen in the streets of city where it acts as and does great service by ,learing the gutters and market places of much animal matter which would otherwise soon become offen- i've. In some If the Southern cities t has become quite tame and strides bout with the assurance of the do- nestle pigeon. Its value is generally and it is seldom molested, f approached while feeding it grunts
 little and moves on. In company with the turkey buzzard it may often 'e seen summing itself upon the roof f house or huddling over a warm himney to dry it's wet plumage. When a dog is killed in the streets or 1hen a horse drops dead from the +baca J,I1lti1raS |