The King Vulture is a large Central and South American bird in the New World vulture family Cathartidae. This vulture lives predominantly in tropical lowland forests stretching from southern Mexico to northern Argentina, though some believe that William Bartram's Painted Vulture of Florida may be of this species. It is the only surviving member of the genus Sarcoramphus, though fossil members are known. It is large and predominantly white, with gray to black ruff, flight, and tail feathers. Its head and neck are bald, with the skin color varying, including yellow, orange, blue, purple, and red. The King Vulture has a very noticeable yellow fleshy caruncle on its beak. This vulture is a scavenger and it often makes the initial cut into a fresh carcass. It also displaces smaller New World Vulture species from a carcass. King Vultures have been known to live for up to 30 years in captivity. King Vultures were popular figures in the Mayan codices as well as in local folklore and medicine. Though currently listed as Least Concern by the IUCN, they are declining in number, due primarily to habitat loss.
Read the rest of this article: <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_Vulture> _______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries: 1791: French inventor Claude Chappe and his brothers first demonstrated the semaphore line, a signaling system of conveying information by means of visual signals, using towers with pivoting shutters, also known as blades or paddles. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/semaphore_line> 1836: Texas Revolution: At a convention in Washington-on-the-Brazos, the Mexican state of Texas adopted a declaration of independence from Mexico, establishing the Republic of Texas. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_Declaration_of_Independence> 1865: Second Taranaki War: Protestant missionary Carl Sylvius Völkner died at the hands of Hauhau militants in Opotiki for working as an agent for George Grey, Governor-General of New Zealand. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volkner_Incident> 1943: World War II: Australian and American air forces attacked and destroyed a large convoy of the Japanese Navy at the Battle of the Bismarck Sea in the Bismarck Sea north of the island of Papua New Guinea. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Bismarck_Sea> 1962: American basketball player Wilt Chamberlain (pictured), then playing for the Philadelphia Warriors, scored 100 points in a game against the New York Knicks at Hersheypark Arena in Hershey, Pennsylvania, still a record in the National Basketball Association today. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilt_Chamberlain%27s_100-point_game> _____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day: hirsute (adj): Covered in hair or bristles; hairy <http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/hirsute> ___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day: I'm telling you this 'cause you're one of my friends. My alphabet starts where your alphabet ends! ... So, on beyond Z! It's high time you were shown That you really don't know All there is to be known. --Dr. Seuss <http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Dr._Seuss> _______________________________________________ Wikipedia Daily Article mailing list. To unsubscribe, visit: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/daily-article-l Questions or comments? Contact [email protected]
