For today's #featheredfriday I am sharing some photos of a Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura) that visited down the street by my apartment the other day.
I was driving home from the dentist and the large raptor was impossible to miss, sitting conspicuously on a streetlamp. I ran upstairs , grabbed my camera, and then ran right back down.
There were actually three at one point, circling above the creek and a neighboring house undergoing some kind of construction. One kept going back and forth across the street, which is the one I took photos of.
Turkey vultures have a very strong sense of smell, which they use to locate carrion. They are a crucial part of the food web!
I enjoyed observing this guy, and he was interested in observing me. Or maybe she - turkey vultures are not sexually dimorphic so I couldn't tell.
Thank you for hosting #featheredfriday, 