Buzzards

[Big Bad Wulff]

Went fishing where a large number of buzzards(turkey vultures) roost in the trees.
2 things to watch out for:

-copious amounts of poop(big birds= big poop)
-breaking branches(large number of large birds on branches make for lots of cracks and falling branches)

Fortunately I wasn't anywhere near either.

I think I witnessed atleast four branches breaking.....large ones at that.

[Flyandtie1]

Thanks for the tip.

I saw some of those last year sitting in the trees coveting a deer carcass lying on the ground. We pulled up in the truck and just watched them for about 30 minutes. They didn't seem to care about us being there and I got to take some cool shots of them sitting in the trees. It was awesome to watch them.

[Gnu Bee Flyer]

In the Okanagan Valley north of the USA/Canada border the Turkey vulture had all but dissapeared in the 1960's . They now have made a huge comeback and we now have about 50 pairs near here. While they are ugly as all get out up close, they are the most magnificent fliers of all. I watched two eagles ride a thermal for about 20 minutes upwards till they were just specks in the sky. along came 4 turkey vultures who rode the same thermals and in 5 minutes they were out of sight. I thought wow they must be lighter than the eagles with the same wing spread. I figured that they probably were just good soarers and not so good near the ground. Wrong! one day we watched one swoop down to elude a smaller bird that was harassing it. It zig zagged thru a grove of some small closely growing trembling aspens that caused the small bird to give up the chase. Its dexterity was amazing to watch.

[analogbob]

They are about 2/3rds the size of an Eagle. There are a lot of them in my area. They are easy to identify when soaring. They hold their wings in a V shaped angle and rock slowly from side to side while soaring. They are powerful flyers when they have to be, as mentioned above. The only large bird that rocks side to side while soaring. Seen up close they are really plug ugly! I knew a guy who hit one with his car. It crashed through the wind shield and landed in the back seat of his car and puked all over it. He never really got the stink out. We call them Buzzards but they are properly Vultures. In Europe a Buzzard is a Buteo, the same family which our Red-tail Hawks, Red-shoulders, Broadwings, Swainson's etc. belong to.
Cordially,
Bob

[ty312]

It never seems to fail on one of the local ponds I fish the Turkey Vultures are always there riding the thermals. It's pretty cool to watch while taking a little break. Those big boys look like their just playing around up there. I always joke with my buddy about wether he's feeling ok, or about his bathing habbits when I bring him along with me. I tell him that they only seem to do that when he's out there with me.
Occasionaly I'll see an Osprey when I'm out on the water. Now thats an amazing bird. I've only spotted them in two locations. At one particular area, made up by three creek fed ponds, I'll see one out hunting for fish on a regular basis. He doesn't seem to believe in catch-n-release though. To each his own. He still makes a good fishin buddy.

Sometimes I have to remind myself not to concentrate so hard on the task at hand(fishing). And look around. It always seems to pay-off.

[Betty Hiner]

Welcome aboard, Ty!! Good to have you here!!

Here's some southern Missouri buzzards doing their solar panel impressions. Early mornings will find hundreds of buzzards, wings extended, soaking up all the sunshine they can find.

[tomf52]

Talk aboout branches breaking - I was fishing the Flatbrook in North Jersy one evening and all of a sudden there was this horrendus splash in the water about five feet in front of me. A squirrel had been in the tree limbs above me (unknown to me) when the limb it was on let go sending the squirrel into the water and my heart into my throat!

[Big Bad Wulff]

Think what it did to the squirrel