Focused Black Vulture

This Black Vulture appears to be looking pretty intensely at something. Though they (and their Turkey Vulture cousins) are primarily scavengers, Black Vultures will sometimes attack small, weak animals. Since the vulture didn't seem to view me as a credible threat (an accurate observation on the vulture's part), I'm thinking the vulture considered the possibility that it saw a potential meal (dead or alive).

Black Vultures generally scavenge by sight, so their eyesight is considered quite good. Though there is a little dispute as to whether most birds can smell, Turkey Vultures definitely find rotting carcasses through their sense of smell, and Black Vultures are smart enough to follow them to a carcass.

There are no other extant (non-extinct) species in the Black Vulture's genus though they're obviously related to the other New World vultures/condors. 

November 26, 2022 at Duke Farms
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_World_vulture


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