The lappet-faced vulture is one of the most aggressive of African birds. It possesses one of the strongest beaks known to the birding kingdom. It is with this unique ability that the lappet-faced vulture affords to arrive last to a carcass due to its ability to tear off skin, tendons, and ligaments that are too tough for smaller scavengers.

Over the recent years, East Africa has witnessed a sharp decline of these birds in the wild. This is attributed to the vultures feeding on poisoned carcasses set out by adjacent communities to the wildlife sanctuaries to kill predators who pry on their livestock. It is at the best interest of each and every one of us to make deliberate and immediate efforts to save the lives of these precious birds to the ecosystem.

Fun Facts about the lappet-faced vulture:

• Because of their dominating size, they will often scare off or steal from smaller vultures.
• These vultures do not feed strictly on carrion; they have been known to sit by termite mounds or locust nests and eat them as they emerge from their holes.
• Lappet-faced vultures sometimes raid flamingo colonies, killing adults, young, and eating the eggs.
• They are usually solitary or live in pairs. Contrary to popular belief, they do not locate carrion by smell. They find carcasses by watching the behavior of other birds.
• Their featherless heads and necks help them to keep clean because they can shake off any sticky remains of their meals. The sun bakes off any bacteria or parasites since this the hardest part of the body to preen.
• These birds have a larger wingspan than any other vulture in Africa.