New World Vultures

Black Vulture

Coragyps atratus
Anytime birders come up with a likely first sighting of a particular species for their area, they want to make extra sure they’ve documented and verified every possible marking and mannerism of the bird. An ornithological dotting of i’s and crossing of t’s, so to speak. On 22 December 1979 that meant John Brown, the local birding columnist, found himself starting to climb up the grapevines on the side of a tall tree in which the object of a great deal of attention was perched, 50 feet up. It was a Black Vulture, the first ever recorded in our region. But proving it didn’t come easy. As Brown related in his column four days later, credit for the initial sighting of the bird went to Scott Stokoe, “an observant and knowledgeable farmer on Bowerman Road, south of Scottsville.” (BA, 26 Dec 1979). When Stokoe drove down to feed his heifers in a pasture at the edge of a wooded swamp late that morning, he noticed a “large, dark bird perched on the stub of a tree about seven or eight feet off the ground.” As he approached, the bird flew, and Stokoe noticed white patches on the underside of the ends of the wings. It landed in another tree about a hundred yards away. Stokoe alerted his parents and his brother, Larry, all of whom, like most of their neighbors, shared a lively interest in local wildlife. “The senior Stokoes, the Larry Stokoes and their daughter, Suzanne, all came over to view the bird, but were at a loss to identify it,” Brown explained. That’s when Stokoe called Brown, who lived nearby. The Browns picked up Mrs. Duncan Schillinger on their way, and drove into the field in Stokoe’s pickup, splitting up when at first the bird could not be found. However, they soon located “a hunched-up dark bird on a dead branch about 50 feet up in a tall tree,” Brown wrote. Against the heavy overcast, and intermittent light drizzle, it looked like “a black blob.” From directly underneath, however, it was obviously a vulture. The white wing patches Stokoe had observed clearly suggested Black Vulture. But Brown needed corroboration. He called in reinforcements. Jeanne Skelly, president of the Rochester Birding Association, who also lived nearby, arrived in a matter of minutes with her daughter Sharon, and a high-powered scope, and a camera. “We studied the bird from every possible angle, noting the short, square tail, the gray legs and the white tip on the dark, bluish bill,” Brown related. “Once it stretched a wing, revealing part of a white patch.” Nonetheless, just to be absolutely sure, the birders wanted to see the vulture in flight. “It was far out of range of sticks and snowballs,” Brown noted, and seemed oblivious to the commotion the small group of birders tried to make. And so Brown set about climbing the tree. It worked. The bird flew. And there could be no further doubt at all.
Background
Lacking a highly developed sense of smell, these carrion feeders “exploit the superior food-finding skills of Turkey Vultures by following them to carcasses and then displacing them from the food,” notes Neil J. Buckley in his profile of this species for the Birds of North America. They are year-round residents in much of the southeastern and southern U.S., south through Mexico and throughout Central and South America. Black Vultures maintain long-term pair bonds, and feed their young for as long as eight months, leading to strong social bonding among kin. Communal roosts apparently help members locate carrion by following successful foragers. This species has increased its numbers and range in some areas, increasing in Texas with the increase in sheep and cattle after 1920, and spreading northward up the East Coast from Virginia since the 1940s. Overall numbers are increasing, but there have been declines in some parts of the southeast. (BNA 411: 1-3, 17)
Local history
Eaton considered this a rare and irregular visitor to New York, “straggling within our boundaries only at long intervals” (Eaton II: 66). Near Region 2 was one at Shelby Center, Orleans County on 28 May 1892 and one at Tonawanda Swamp in May 1899.Even in 1974, Bull considered this a “great rarity this far north.” Of more than three dozen records statewide, most were downstate (Bull, p. 166).
Status
Monroe County annotated list (1985) described this as a casual, very rare visitant. At that time there were only two records. Now an irregular, but almost annual, very rare visitant.
Occurrence
Including the Scottsville bird, there have been two dozen sightings, all in spring except for one fall and two winter records, and about half at the Braddock Bay hawkwatch. One on 22 December 1979 (Stokoe, Brown, Skellys) Scottsville. (KB 30:108) Accepted by NYSARC. (KB 31:205) One on 3 April 1984 (Lloyd) Webster. (KB 34:179) Not accepted by NYSARC. (KB 35:229) Two on 31 March 1986 (Nicoletti) at Frisbee Hill. (LGNR; KB 36:148) One on 7 May 1986 (C. Taylor, Symonds, S. Skelly) at Braddock Bay. (KB 36:148; GOS, December 1986) This bird was seen from 9-10:30 a.m. Probably the same bird was seen at 12:30 p.m. in Greece (Griffith), about six miles away. (LG, June 1986) Not accepted by NYSARC. (KB 37:208) One on 26 March 1987 (Nicoletti, Symonds, C. Taylor) Braddock Bay. (KB 37:149) Two on 21 May 1988 (Lloyd, Sunderlin) Webster. (KB 38:196) One on 13 April 1989 (D. and D. Traver) Webster. (KB 39:173) One on 19 May 1989 (Listman) Point Breeze. (KB 39: 173) One on 24 May 1989 (Nicoletti) Braddock Bay. (KB 39:173) One on 13 March 1991 (Ewald) Braddock Bay. (KB 41:183) One on 3 April 1992 (Ewald) Braddock Bay. (KB 42:162) One on 23 May 1992 (Ewald, mob) at Braddock Bay. (GNR) One late December 1995-January 1996 Letchworth SP. (KB 46:150) This bird overwintered at Inspiration Point, and “often roosted on the shale rocks facing the morning sun, or in the pines near the Interpretive Center,” Fox notes. “It fed almost exclusively on roadkill and winter starved deer. Its ferocious feeding habits kept the larger Turkey Vultures at bay. It had been observed a number of times leaving its morning roost flying east into Livingston County and had been seen feeding on roadkill within the county.” (Fox, p. 25) One 28 March 1997 (Wolford) Lake Shore Marshes WMA, accepted by NYSARC. (KB 50:19) One on 5 May 1997 (JB?) Braddock Bay. (KB 47:201) Accepted by NYSARC. (KB 52:20) One on 27 March 1998 (C. Cass, S. Hawks, mob) Braddock Bay. (GNR, KB 48:222) Accepted by NYSARC. (KB 52:307) One on 22 September 1999 (D. Tetlow) N. Chili. (KB 50:53) One on 22 April 2001 (Fox, mob) Braddock Bay. (KB 51:697) One on 15 April 2003 (Barry, Lawrey) Braddock Bay. (KB 53:233) One on 8-9 April 2004 (Smart) Braddock Bay, probably same bird, since bird in both sightings was missing fourth primary finger on left wing. (KB 54:230; official counter Tim Smart’s daily report) One on 22 May 2004 (Spahn, Whittum) Elba. (KB 54:230) One on 8 June 2004 (Niven, Mather) Manitou. (KB 54:335) One on 1 April 2005 (D. Tetlow) Braddock Bay. (KB 55:271) One on 8 May 2006 (D. Tetlow) Braddock Bay. (KB 56:240)

Turkey Vulture

Cathartes aura
On the Saturday before Easter in 1985, gale force winds arrived early and continued through the morning, pushing huge numbers of Turkey Vultures past the Braddock Bay hawkwatch platform. “There were times when scores of vultures could be seen twisting, turning and gliding with the wind,” Frank Dobson reported. “Masters of soaring and capable of taking advantage of even the slightest breeze, the vultures that windy morning never flapped a wing.” Some skimmed just over the bay; others “hedgehopped over trees and bushes,” Dobson related. And others “just set their six-foot wings and sailed like arrows to the east along the lakeshore.” (Birds, 14 April 1985)Even on those spring days when the winds are unfavorable for large flight of raptors at Braddock Bay, one can still reasonably expect to catch sight of at least a few of these birds fighting their way eastwards along the lakeshore. Ungainly, even repulsive when seen at close range on the ground or in a perch, this beneficial, carrion-eating species is absolutely magnificent aloft, a master soarer, capable of coaxing lift from the slightest updraft, teetering on every current with its wings held slightly upwards. They constitute perhaps the most dramatic story of all at the Braddock Bay hawkwatch. Observers there have chronicled an ongoing, startling increase in numbers during the last three decades. Elon Howard Eaton, no doubt, would be astounded at the numbers tallied today compared to the early 1900s when these birds were only occasional or accidental summer visitors in our region.
Background
This most widely distributed vulture in the New World breeds from southern Canada to southernmost South America in areas of mixed forest and farmland, which offer the best opportunities to feed on both wild and domestic carrion. Its breeding range expanded in the upper Midwest since the 1920s, and its populations have increased markedly in the northeastern U.S. as the deer population exploded. This has offset declines in the south, where there was a shift from small family farms to larger cash crop or feedlot operations with improved disposal of dead livestock. This species plays a particularly beneficial role, disposing of carcasses, and simultaneously helping to control the spread of disease by destroying anthrax bacilli, hog cholera viruses and other pathogens in its digestive tract. It takes as long as four months from the time eggs are laid to the actual departure of young from the nests, so nests are typically placed in areas that are relatively inaccessible to predators. (BNA 339: 1, 17-18, 21)
Local history
Turkey Vultures were probably only rare stragglers in western New York during the nineteenth century. First known record in our region was a specimen taken on 23 May 1884 at Kendall. (B&M, p. 158) Eaton (1914) knew them only as summer visitors, primarily downstate and “in the warmer portions of western New York . . . as yet we lack definite proof of its breeding within the limits of the State.” He listed Turkey Vultures as only occasional summer visitors in Monroe County and accidental visitors in Wayne County. (Eaton II: 64, I: county charts) After about 1920, increasing numbers were seen in New York as this species underwent a “major range expansion into the Northeast.” (Levine, p. 140) But it was still only rarely seen in our region. One seen “flying low” a mile east of Fancher in Orleans County on 15 July 1928 merited special attention in Edson’s and Horsey’s weekly column. “Eaton records it is an occasional summer visitor to this locality, but this is the first time observers have been fortunate enough to see it here,” they reported. (D&C, 23 July 1928) Indeed, of nearly 150 species tallied by Horsey and Edson that year, “The Glaucous gull, the Turkey vulture and the Barn owl are said to be the most unusual.” (“First Guests Arrive in Flutter as Dinner Bell Sounds at Highland Park Bird Refuge,” D&C, 14 January 1929) One taking a “sightseeing tour over Highland Park” on 12 May 1930 also merited comment in Horsey’s and Edson’s weekly bird column. “Unfortunately for his peace of mind, a half dozen rude crows caught sight of him and unceremoniously hustled him away,” they reported. (“Turkey Vulture Visits Park, but Finds Crows Quarrelsome,” D&C, 19 May 1930)Breeding in the state was first documented in Westchester County in 1925, followed by another record from the Oak Orchard Swamp two years later. (Andrle, p. 96; B&M, p. 159) First nesting at Bergen Swamp occurred in 1928, according to Bull. (Bull, p. 164) “Not so many years ago, the turkey vulture was quite a rarity in this part of the country,” Edson noted in 1945 (WBR 2 July 1945), “but it is growing more common every year.” Thirty-six in June 1951 were at Bergen Swamp, followed by 29 there on 16 October 1952 (Van Beurden), another 26 (McKinney, Hartwell) the following 12 September (GNR), 19 on 9 June 1957 (KB7:91) and 28 (Corcoran, mob) on 9 July 1959 (KB9:124). At that point it was considered a probable breeder there, according to Leo Tanghe’s list of nesting species in the Rochester area. (GOS, May-August 1953) When he examined the returns from 1,665 outings by Genesee Ornithological Society members within a 50-miles radius of Rochester from 1951-1954, he found this species reported 131 times between the last half of March and the end of November, primarily as a spring migrant when average counts were 7-10. (KB 5: 69: 2A-2B) Even in July 1957, Edson, seeing ten circling over the river at Letchworth SP, declared it “the largest group of these birds I have seen here at any time.” (WBR, 15 July 1957)How times have changed! At least 200 now spend the summers at Letchworth, and spring migrants are tallied in the thousands. The expansion of this species northward has been fueled, in part, because of a gradually warming climate and because land development “may be forcing the Turkey Vulture to utilize more of its potential range. In addition, a marked increase in the deer populations, resulting in higher mortality through starvation, and an increased number of road-killed animals have provided an additional food supply,” Gordon Meade wrote. (Andrle, p. 96) John Bull, in 1974, noted that Turkey Vultures “has greatly increased in recent years.” He believed this species, like other southern invaders, reached western New York from the west by way of Ontario, via the Niagara frontier. (Bull, p. 164)
Status
Monroe County annotated list (1985) described this as a regular, common spring transient; an irregular, uncommon summer resident and fall visitant; and a sporadic, very rare winter visitant (at that time only three records). Now an abundant spring migrant.Livingston County, Fox (1998) considered this a regular uncommon winter visitant (occasional and rare outside Letchworth SP) and a regular common summer resident.
Occurrence
Spring: The Monroe County annotated list (1985) indicated a range of arrival dates from 23 February (1983) to 5 May, with a mid range, or “normal arrival time” of 19 March to 15 April. Subsequently, two on 9 February 1996 (Griffith,Dox-Griffith) at Greece were earlier “firsts” of spring migration. (GOS, April 1996) In most years migrants had departed by 21 June, with a late departure date of 30 June. There has been a phenomenal increase in migrants tallied along the Lake Ontario shoreline. When Walt Listman, Donald Wolf and Donald Bieber counted raptors at Braddock Bay in spring 1949, they tallied 56 Turkey Vultures out of 21,521 total birds of prey (GOS, May/July 1949), or less than one percent of the total. When the hawkwatch resumed in 1977, the tally of Turkey Vultures – 858 – was 3.8 percent of that year’s total count. The record 16,844 observed in 2001 represented nearly a fourth of all raptors seen that spring! The one-day record of 5,834 was set that year on 8 April. Compare that to the “maxima” of 64 on 15 April 1967 at Manitou, listed by Bull (p. 164), or the 153 on 16 April 1973 at the Hawk Lookout, a tally that was of “special interest” and “more than doubled the previous high.” (GOS, July-September 1973)Four years later, John Brown marveled “Who, in their right mind, would ever dare to predict that on any one day in late March 196 Turkey Vultures . . . could be seen here?” (BA, 6 April 1977; LGNR) The record 533 that streamed over on 31 March 1982 “were flying ahead of severe thunderstorms, coming from the west and the Ohio Valley, accompanied by winds that reached an official velocity of 51 mph,” Laura and Neil Moon reported. (GOS, August 1982) Strong southwesterly to west-southwesterly winds gusting to 52 mph ushered in the next record count, on 6 April 1985, when 1,891 were tallied at Braddock Bay between 7 a.m. and 2 p.m. (GOS, July/August 1985) On 16 April 1993, nearly that many – 1,370 – flew by Braddock Bay in about 30 minutes! (GOS, June 1993)Along with Red-tailed Hawk, this species will “persistently migrate along the lakeshore even under adverse conditions.” (GOS, August/September 1988)
Summer/breeding status: A nest with a single young bird was found in the Marengo Swamp (now Galen Marsh WMA), just south of Clyde, Wayne County, in 1966. (KB16: 220) It had been used for at least the two previous years, according to the landowner. The nest was in the hollow base of a large sycamore tree. Walter Benning, who made repeated trips to monitor the nest, wrote that on two occasions an adult remained close by, keeping watch, without making any fuss or uttering any cries. The young bird, which appeared to have trouble with one of its wings, was last seen at the nest on 5 September, when it was able to fly short distances. (KB17: 20-21) Letchworth SP is perhaps the best-known breeding location. At least two hundred now reside there each summer and are probably the birds most associated with the park by casual observers. They cannot help but be noticed as they soar gracefully at or below the level of the canyon rims, or perch on the Mt. Morris Dam. The park’s steep gorges provide protected crevices and ledges for nesting, updrafts on which to soar, and ample carrion – not only from animals killed on park roads or carried in by the river, but from those that literally fall into the gorges. (“Turkey vultures gorge at Letchworth,” D&C, 4 August 2002)It also was found breeding at Webster in 1989. (KB 39:226)Exact breeding status is difficult to determine, even during the BBA projects. Many nest sites no doubt go undetected because of their relative inaccessibility; on the other hand, birds may wander widely in search of carrion into blocks far from actual nest locations.Even so, sightings in almost every block during the second project suggest this species is not only well established as a breeding bird in our region, but has expanded into lakeshore areas in Monroe and Wayne counties.

Summer maxima: 55 on 19 June 1982 (Davids, mob) at Scottsville. (GOS, August 1982) Fall: The Monroe County annotated list (1985) indicated a range of dates from 15 August (1981) to 26 November. Fall maxima: 16 to 26 on 18-22 August 1982 (Symonds) at Carlton “feeding on a dead calf.” (KB 32:272) 32 on 19 August 1986 (F. and D. Dobson) Wheatland. (GOS, October 1986) 75 on 17 September 1983 (Griffith) west lakeshore. (GNR) 34 on 4 November 2003 (Symonds) at Byron (GNR) 51 on 17 October 1980 (F. Dobson) at Scottsville. (GNR)
Winter: One on 28 January 1980 (D. Spier) at Greece (KB30: 107) was the first regional winter record. The second was at Greece (Henderson) on 12 January 1982. (KB32: 114) Another on 22 January 1984 (K. Murphy) was at Henrietta. (GNR) A particularly accurate prediction came in 1976, when early spring arrivals prompted Chip Perrigo to suggest that “perhaps in a decade they may winter in upstate New York.” (LG, April 1976) Ten years later, two lingered at least until 17 February 1986 at Letchworth SP (KB36:90), where wintering vultures are now annual. In 1989, Doug Bassett, park naturalist, described the winter routine of 15-20 that wintered in the park 1987-88 and 1988-89 in an article for the Kingbird. A favorite daytime roosting spot was a vertical rock cliff in the 325-foot deep Portage Canyon, in the area of Inspiration Point. “On this cliff which faces 137 degrees southeast, the vultures get a good exposure to the sun and are sheltered from the prevailing southwest winds. The irregularly coarse-fractured Nunda Sandstone provides many shelves and outcroppings for vulture-sized footholds.” Vultures regularly could be found here two to three hours before sunset, and on mild days might be seen in their “sunning” posture with outstretched wings. During the worst windchill, “they seem to hug the cliff, sitting less upright or lying horizontally tight to the rocks.” By late afternoon, the vultures would become more alert and increase their preening. About an hour before sunset, they would depart the roost in five to 10 minutes, spend another five to 10 minutes soaring in or above the canyon, then retire to a night roost in Norway Spruces about a quarter of a mile to the east. They would land in the tree tops, then gradually shift to lower branches and positions closer to the trunks, but remaining in the upper fourth of the trees, and continuing their preening until nightfall. “This evening show is their most spectacular behavior and is often in concert with the squadrons of 75-100 Rock Doves that have a year-round home in the canyon.” In the morning, the vultures would usually leave the roost within an hour after sunrise, all departing within 15 minutes and going their separate ways before reconvening at the cliff in the afternoon. Deer carcasses “seemed to be the standard menu” along with rabbit, squirrel, raccoon and woodchuck. “During the coldest period and deepest snows the vultures seemed to stay near their roosts and may have gone a week or more without eating.” In summary, Bassett listed these factors that make the park a good overwintering spot for this species: “a day roost with a sunny exposure that is protected from the prevailing winds; a nearby night roost in tall, dense trees which serve as a windbreak; a winter concentration of several hundred deer as a potential food source; easy sailing in the regular air currents circulating through the canyon; roosts already situated in prime nesting habitat.” (KB 39: 74-79)Maxima below reflect the increase in numbers now wintering here.
Winter maxima: 31 on 25 December 2007 (Zettel) Rush. (LG, February 2008) 29 on 29 December 1995 (C. Cass, Davids) near Inspiration Point in Letchworth SP. (GOS, February 1996; Fox, p. 26) 42 on 30 December 2006 (S. Maley) at Bergen. (LG, February 2007) 42 on 5 January 2006 (Davids, D. Tetlow) at Wheatland. (LG March 2006) 21 on 17 January 2003 (D. Tetlow) Wheatland. (LG, March 2003)
The wintering birds at Wheatland were not far from the entrance to Oatka Creek Park. “There is a fairly sheltered valley that they use during the day, but interestingly, they roost high up in some spruce trees. They do not use the site every year. I have tried to find an alternate site on other years without success,” Dave Tetlow said. (correspondence)
Misc.
Richard and Ursula Walton witnessed an interesting interaction between Turkey Vultures and a Red-tailed Hawk on their farm north of Palmyra in spring 1988. The hawk had claimed the carcass of a woodchuck and “would drive the vultures away whenever they went near,” Frank Dobson reported. (Birds, 15 May 1988) “As the red-tailed feasted, four vultures circled in anticipation from a distance of five or six feet. The vultures towered over the raptor, but they do not have the tools to challenge a hawk’s razor bill and needle talons.”Banded bird: One observed on 7 May 1981 at Braddock Bay had been wind tagged in Miami, Fla. (GNR)

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