The turkey vulture may not be pretty, but it serves an important purpose

I would suggest only a face a mother could love, but even that might be stretching it. Turkey vultures are not attractive creatures, especially when compared to the beauty of other birds — like the blue jay, cardinal or bald eagle. They look like something out of a horror film. Adaptation and evolution chose purpose and functionality over beauty. If you can look past their facial unpleasantness, they soar brilliantly in the high sky, riding the thermals with a wingspan of about 6 feet. They are a bird of local lore and fill their niche admirably — cleaning dead animals, mostly mammals but also reptiles and amphibians, from roads and preventing the spread of disease They are also known as "buzzards," a misnomer when mistakenly identified as hawks by European settlers. In riding the thermal, they soar in circles as they slowly rise in the sky looking and smelling for recently deceased animals, those that died in the last 24 hours. Unlike raptors who kill their prey, turkey vultures are scavengers and feed on carrion. We once saw a turkey vulture waiting patiently its turn behind a hawk as it was eating its prey. Their featherless heads, displaying their pink face, protect them from bacteria that might get on their feathers when they stick it into a dead animal. They do not have a septum either, you can look right through their nose. This adaptation prevents food from getting up their nose. They have highly acidic stomachs, way more acidic than the human stomach, which kills bacteria that quickly invades the carcasses. It is not unusual to see large groups of vultures in a tree, as social birds they are called wakes. You may see them spreading their wings in a "horaltic pose" to warm up or dry off. They mate for life with both parents sharing in raising their young. Nests are built on the ground, sometimes reused for years. In Sheffield, I have noticed some turkey vultures that like to hang out at an old fire station. There is a nest up there of some sort. Turkey vultures use their diet of carrion and that highly acidic stomach as one of the most creative defense mechanisms in nature. When threatened or distressed they will vomit — sending it as much as 10 feet — at harassers. In the wild, they can live 8-12 years, while in captivity up to 30 years. If you visit The Raptor Center of Lorain County Metro Parks at Carlisle Reservation, you can get an up-close look at Artemis, their resident turkey vulture. Artemis has been at the raptor center since 2010 due to being permanently imprinted. Of course, we cannot talk about turkey vultures without talking about the tradition in Hinckley. The legend surrounds "The Great Hinckley Hunt of 1818" in which a landowner rounded up some hunters to kill predators that were killing domestic animals and their crops. The predators were encircled and killed, leaving a smorgasbord of carcasses for the vultures. The feast was so memorable that the date imprinted in the vultures, and they have returned on the same date every year. Known today as Buzzard Day, it is celebrated every year on March 15. It is perhaps only legend, as there are alternative historical accounts. In Ohio, we can also see black vultures, though not nearly as common. They have a black/gray head, while still lacking feathers, it makes them considerably more attractive. They are equipped with excellent eyesight but lack the olfactory capabilities of turkey vultures. Jeff Pelc, U.S. Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services biologist, shares the difference between the two in flight, "On the undersides of turkey vulture wings, the primary and secondary flight feathers are white to gray on the bottom side as you are looking up at the bird. Black vultures only have white primary feathers on the tips of the wings." They have a different story, as they will both "freeload" off the turkey vultures — staying close as they find food—and problematically kill farm animals. Stan Smith, program assistant in Ag and Natural Resources for Fairfield County Extension said, "Over the better part of at least the past 15 years, Ohio livestock producers have increasingly experienced problems with black vultures. Unlike its red-headed cousin the turkey vulture that feeds only on the carcasses of dead animals, black vultures are an aggressive bird that will, on occasion, kill other animals for food." Amazingly, black vultures will even attack a cow in labor to prey on the calf while still in the birth canal. Farmers, of course, are not going to tolerate that and even though black vultures are protected like other migratory birds, permits may be granted to hang a black vulture in effigy to keep the other vultures away. It is a barbaric solution, but one that USDA's National Wildlife Research Center has found effective. The guidelines are specific and not to be haphazardly attempted without direction. Around the planet, vultures are an interesting group of birds. Ruppell's Griffon vultures, of Africa, soar higher than any other animal, at an altitude of 36,000 feet. The mountain-dwelling bearder vulture's stomach is so acidic it can digest bones in just 24 hours. These acidic stomachs also actually help the ecology as they can remove diseases like cholera, anthrax and rabies from the African ecosystem — when vultures find deceased animals infected with these diseases. In India, however, the vultures suffered from poisoning from Diclofenac, a drug to treat cattle. Since this culture does not eat the beef, when the cattle die, they are eaten by vultures where they ingest this fatal drug— which, in part, has led to a 95 percent decline of the vulture population. Back in Africa, among the planet's most heinous humans — animal poachers — intentionally poison carcasses to keep vultures from alerting authorities of their location, killing up to 500 vultures with one carcass. Reportedly, 50 percent of all vulture species are endangered. Where the vultures do not clean up the carcasses and the diseases, feral dogs and rats carry those diseases into human communities. In fact, rabies infections in India have led to 20,000 deaths per year. Another example of mother nature knowing best. Turkey vultures are a fascinating species and vultures an important family to our ecological community. For that, they deserve a little love. Earth Day Black River Audubon and Surfrider celebrated Earth Day with a beach cleanup at Lakeside Landing in Lorain last Saturday. About 20 volunteers collected 280 pounds of garbage—mostly plastic, in all its forms, but also a tire, masks, blanket/tarp and fast-food containers. Contact Rob Swindell at robswindell@roadrunner.com.