Adult Bearded vulture (Gypaetus barbatus) in flight. This vulture is a specialised, solitary scavenger that feeds almost exclusively on bone. It will

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Adult Bearded vulture (Gypaetus barbatus) in flight. This vulture is a specialised, solitary scavenger that feeds almost exclusively on bone. It will patrol a large mountain territory, looking for the skeleton of a carcass. Small bones are digested whole. Larger bones are dropped from a height to break them open, exposing the bone marrow. This vulture has strong gastric juices that enable it to digest bone. The bearded vulture, found in Europe, Asia and Africa, is endangered in parts of its range. Photographed near Lalibela in the Ethiopian highlands.

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Size: 5120px × 3413px
Photo credit: © TONY CAMACHO/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: adult, africa, african, animal, barbatus, bearded, biology, bird, carnivore, carnivorous, ethiopia, fauna, flight, flying, gypaetus, lammergeier, lammergeyer, nature, ornithological, ornithology, prey, raptor, scavenger, vulture, wildlife, zoological, zoology