禿鷲

禿鷲又叫禿鷹，係一種以食腐肉為生嘅大型鷲。除咗南極洲同海島之外，其他亞種差唔多分布全球每個地方。

特徵 
最顯著嘅特徵係佢由頭至頸個位置係無羽毛既。因為佢哋食腐屍時，屍體嘅血會黐住禿鷲頭頸上嘅羽毛，而呢啲位置係唔能夠清潔到。

喺英國文學嚟講，一群禿鷲被稱為venue，而一群禿鷲響天上盤旋滑翔時，就叫做kettle。德文字Geier喺鳥類學嚟講並無確實嘅解釋，但有時響英文詩上用作「禿鷲」。

分類 
禿鷲可被分為兩大類：舊大陸禿鷲同新大陸禿鷲。兩者喺進化上有好多相似嘅地方。

舊大陸禿鷲 

舊大陸禿鷲主要分佈響非洲、亞洲同歐洲，屬於鷹隼目。其他鷹科成員包括黑鳶、鵟、鵰、蒼鷹等。佢哋主要靠視力去搵屍體。

新大陸禿鷲 

新大陸禿鷲主要響美洲暖嘅平原上搵食。佢哋同鷹隼目嘅關係唔近，反而接近鸛形目。有幾種嘅嗅覺異常靈敏，有別其他鷹。

食啲乜 

禿鷲有時會襲擊健康嘅動物，但主要係又病又受傷嗰啲。爭食時非常快，好似戰場咁樣。佢哋個胃含有濃酸，可以消化屍體內嘅細菌，令禿鷲本身唔容易染病。

毒藥所帶嚟既威脅 
近十年嚟，印度同巴基斯坦嘅禿鷲種群減少咗九成有多，喺南亞地區亦有兩至三種禿鷲瀕臨絕種。可能係同diclofenac有關，係一種非類固醇消炎藥有消炎止痛功效。呢隻藥本來係用嚟醫牲畜，但當牲畜死咗，屍體內留有大量嘅藥份，由於農夫大多會將屍體亂棄置響荒野。禿鷲食屍體會直接吸收diclofenac，導致腎衰竭，甚至死亡。

禿鷲數量減少為印度帶來衛生問題。因為老鼠同野狗代替禿鷲處理屍體，而佢哋會帶來傳染病。而青藏高原上，有一種叫做天葬既儀式，就係將死咗嘅人搬去Towers of Silence，畀禿鷲食。

Meloxicam係另一種NSAID後期被證實對禿鷲無害。雖然政府已棄用diclofenac，但嗰隻藥仍然響市面上買賣，仍然係世界上一大問題。

其他禿鷲文化

古埃及 
In Southern Africa, the name for a Nubian vulture is synonymous with the term applied to lovers, because these vultures are always seen in pairs, mother and child remaining closely bonded together. Pairing, bonding, protecting, and loving are essential attributes associated with the vulture's size and its ability to soar high up in the sky. The Egyptians considered the vulture an excellent mother, and its wide wingspan was seen as all-encompassing and providing a protective cover to its infants. The vulture hieroglyph A was the uniliteral sign used for the glottal sound (3) including words such as mother, prosperous, grandmother, and ruler

響西方地方，禿鷲嘅形象通常偏為負面。

In the Western world, the image of the vulture is far more negative, with 'vulture' used as a metaphor for those who prey on the weak or dying, with associated negative connotations of cowardice and selfishness (although the vulture plays an important natural role).

其他補充 
喺香港，荔園動物園響1980年代曾經養過好幾隻禿鷲，但後期全都死晒。而米埔自然保護區過去亦有禿鷲飛來過冬，係一種極罕見嘅冬候鳥。

香港鳥類

參考 
 Ferguson-Lees, Christie, Franklin, Mead and Burton Raptors of the World ISBN 0-7136-8026-1
 Grimmett, Inskipp and Inskipp, Birds of India ISBN 0-691-04910-6
 Hilty,  Birds of Venezuela, ISBN 0-7136-6418-5
 Ian Sinclair, Phil Hockey and Warwick Tarboton, SASOL Birds of Southern Africa (Struik 2002) ISBN 1-86872-721-1
 "India's Vultures Fall Prey to a Drug in the Cattle They Feed On", New York Times, Amelia Gentleman, March 28, 2006.

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