The sheer volume of life in the wild in Africa creates a staggering volume of carcasses, one that the resident vultures are only too happy to take care of. Hyenas and marabou storks do their part but the huge flocks of vultures that fill the landscape do a huge amount of cleanup, and any kill will be covered in a swarm like this one as soon as there's nothing bigger around to claim it.
Although the picture above would make them look like a single breed, we actually saw 7 distinct kinds of vultures in our trip, such as this Ruppell's griffon vulture in
Ndutu, looking every bit like a Disney stereotype. But, ugly or not, they are performing a very important part in the cycle of life on the savanna.
And in the
Maasai Mara we saw this Egyptian vulture with a very different look to it altogether. The more it ate and filled up, the more of its yellow crop protruded through the feathers on its chest. This was a very lucky and rare find and our tour guide had only seen them a few times in his 25+ years of touring east Africa.
Although the picture above would make them look like a single breed, we actually saw 7 distinct kinds of vultures in our trip, such as this Ruppell's griffon vulture in Ndutu, looking every bit like a Disney stereotype. But, ugly or not, they are performing a very important part in the cycle of life on the savanna.
And in the Maasai Mara we saw this Egyptian vulture with a very different look to it altogether. The more it ate and filled up, the more of its yellow crop protruded through the feathers on its chest. This was a very lucky and rare find and our tour guide had only seen them a few times in his 25+ years of touring east Africa.
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