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A photo of a Bearded Vulture (Gypaetus barbatus)
Bearded Vulture

Bearded Vulture

Gypaetus barbatus

The bearded vulture (Gypaetus barbatus), also known as the lammergeier and ossifrage, is a very large bird of prey and the only member of the genus Gypaetus. This bird is also identified as Huma bird or Homa bird in Iran and north west Asia. Traditionally considered an Old World vulture, it actually forms a separate minor lineage of Accipitridae together with the Egyptian vulture (Neophron percnopterus), its closest living relative. It is not much more closely related to the Old World vultures proper than to, for example, hawks, and differs from the former by its feathered neck. Although dissimilar, the Egyptian and bearded vulture each have a lozenge-shaped tail—unusual among birds of prey. The population of this species continues to decline. In 2004, it was classified by the IUCN Red List as least concern; since 2014, it is listed as near threatened. The bearded vulture is the only known vertebrate whose diet consists almost exclusively (70 to 90 percent) of bone. It lives and breeds on crags in high mountains in southern Europe, the Caucasus, Africa, the Indian subcontinent, and Tibet, laying one or two eggs in mid-winter that hatch at the beginning of spring. Populations are residents.
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Bearded Vultures on Birda

Photos

Sightings

A map showing the sighting location
Profile picture for Claudio Danesi
Claudio Danesi
Wednesday 20 Sep 2023 - 2:57pm
Switzerland
A map showing the sighting location
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Andrew Sheerin
Friday 15 Sep 2023 - 2:22pm
Spain
A photo of a Bearded Vulture photographed in Buseu Spain
Profile picture for Andrew Sheerin
Andrew Sheerin
Thursday 14 Sep 2023 - 3:09pm
Spain
A map showing the sighting location
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Eimear McClenaghan
Tuesday 29 Aug 2023 - 8:50am
France
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