PUBLISHED STUDIES: National Wildlife Research Center: Management of Problems Caused by Vultures CURRENT PROJECTS AND RESEARCH: COMING SOON (NOTE: If you are pursuing a research project that you would like to see mentioned here, please send a brief summary and contact information to: VultureSociety@gmail.com) FUTURE PROJECTS AND RESEARCH: There are still innumerable questions about the vulture's natural history that have yet to be answered. We hope to eventually pursue the following study topics, and we are constantly seeking interested students or scientists who can participate in or pioneer these studies themselves. DIGESTIVE SYSTEM: One very important question concerns the ability of the vulture to consume, with no bad effects, the rotten carcass of an animal which died of infection and illness. Thanks to the turkey vulture, such carcasses are quickly cleaned up and the danger of their infection to other animals or humans is removed. Even the bird's excrement is sanitized. The knowledge of how they can eat diseased meat with no ill effects could be extremely important to medical science. There is even evidence for the claim that the vulture can pass anthrax through its digestive system, killing the virus and remaining unharmed. MIGRATION: Every fall, many North American vultures fly south. Where they go, where their rookery is, how they communicate, and many other questions, go unanswered. A little-known instinct of the Turkey Vulture is its ability to return to its summer feeding grounds on the Vernal Equinox on the same day each year, much as the swallows annually return to Capistrano. POPULATION: In recent years the Turkey Vulture's range has grown, and there have even been an estimated increase of 1.79% in their breeding population. This succes has continued in spite of constant persecution and intervention by humans. In some areas it has been mandated that all animal carcasses of any kind will be immediately buried. This has removed much of the vultures' food supply and many have starved to death. In other areas, there are organized efforts to rid communities of vulture roosts by poisoning or shooting the offending birds. How has the turkey vulture continued to proliferate so successfully under these circumstances? SEARCH AND RESCUE: The combination of the turkey vulture's olfactory capabilities and the advantage afforded to them by flight, these birds are interesting and likely candiates for use in Search and Rescue efforts. Indepth study on the subject has yet to be undertaken. BIBLIOGRAPHY: The Turkey Vulture Society has compiled a comprehensive bibliography of over 100 published books, papers, and articles on the turkey vulture, Cathartes aura. Updated each year, this compilation is available for purchase through this website. To purchase the bibliography, visit our online store. THE TURKEY VULTURE SOCIETY LIBRARY: The library of the Turkey Vulture Society is maintained at our new corporate headquarters in Charlottesville, Virginia. It consists of books, papers, reports, clippings, magazine articles, and computer information. The emphasis is on material related to the Turkey Vulture and other New World Vultures. To see a list of the resources available though our library, click here. The library is in the early stages of development. We are actively searching for additional books and material. Contributions and suggestions are welcome. |
The Turkey Vulture Society is a non-profit scientific corporation. Its purpose is to promote scientific studies of the life habits and needs of the Turkey Vulture, to protect the vulture and its habitat, and to inform the public of the valuable and essential services this bird provides to mankind and to the environment. |
RESOURCES for SCIENTISTS |
THE SCIENTISTS' NETWORK: Join this FREE chat group to network with banders, researchers, and other vulture biologists from across the Americas! Share questions, findings, advice, and research tips! |
PUBLISHED STUDIES: National Wildlife Research Center: Management of Problems Caused by Vultures CURRENT PROJECTS AND RESEARCH: COMING SOON (NOTE: If you are pursuing a research project that you would like to see mentioned here, please send a brief summary and contact information to: VultureSociety@gmail.com) FUTURE PROJECTS AND RESEARCH: There are still innumerable questions about the vulture's natural history that have yet to be answered. We hope to eventually pursue the following study topics, and we are constantly seeking interested students or scientists who can participate in or pioneer these studies themselves. DIGESTIVE SYSTEM: One very important question concerns the ability of the vulture to consume, with no bad effects, the rotten carcass of an animal which died of infection and illness. Thanks to the turkey vulture, such carcasses are quickly cleaned up and the danger of their infection to other animals or humans is removed. Even the bird's excrement is sanitized. The knowledge of how they can eat diseased meat with no ill effects could be extremely important to medical science. There is even evidence for the claim that the vulture can pass anthrax through its digestive system, killing the virus and remaining unharmed. MIGRATION: Every fall, many North American vultures fly south. Where they go, where their rookery is, how they communicate, and many other questions, go unanswered. A little-known instinct of the Turkey Vulture is its ability to return to its summer feeding grounds on the Vernal Equinox on the same day each year, much as the swallows annually return to Capistrano. POPULATION: In recent years the Turkey Vulture's range has grown, and there have even been an estimated increase of 1.79% in their breeding population. This succes has continued in spite of constant persecution and intervention by humans. In some areas it has been mandated that all animal carcasses of any kind will be immediately buried. This has removed much of the vultures' food supply and many have starved to death. In other areas, there are organized efforts to rid communities of vulture roosts by poisoning or shooting the offending birds. How has the turkey vulture continued to proliferate so successfully under these circumstances? SEARCH AND RESCUE: The combination of the turkey vulture's olfactory capabilities and the advantage afforded to them by flight, these birds are interesting and likely candiates for use in Search and Rescue efforts. Indepth study on the subject has yet to be undertaken. BIBLIOGRAPHY: The Turkey Vulture Society has compiled a comprehensive bibliography of over 100 published books, papers, and articles on the turkey vulture, Cathartes aura. Updated each year, this compilation is available for purchase through this website. To purchase the bibliography, visit our online store. THE TURKEY VULTURE SOCIETY LIBRARY: The library of the Turkey Vulture Society is maintained at our new corporate headquarters in Charlottesville, Virginia. It consists of books, papers, reports, clippings, magazine articles, and computer information. The emphasis is on material related to the Turkey Vulture and other New World Vultures. To see a list of the resources available though our library, click here. The library is in the early stages of development. We are actively searching for additional books and material. Contributions and suggestions are welcome. |
At the present, scientific knowledge of the turkey vulture, Cathartes aura, is limited. The Turkey Vulture Society is devoted to conducting and promoting scientific study that will advance our understanding of the life habits and needs of the turkey vulture, protect the vulture and its habitat, and help us to understand the valuable and essential services this bird provides to mankind and to the environment. |
