LAMMERGEIER

LAMMERGEIER

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Lammergeier also called bearded vulture, big eaglelike vulture of the Old World (family Accipitridae), frequently over 1 metre (40 inches) long, with a wingspread of nearly 3 metres (10 feet). Brown above and tawny below, the lammergeier has spots on the breast, black and white stripes on the head, and long bristles on the “chin.”

The bearded vulture is sparsely distributed across a considerable range. It may be found in mountainous regions from Europe through much of Asia and Africa. This species is almost entirely associated with mountains and inselbergs with plentiful cliffs, crags, precipices, canyons and gorges. They are often found near alpine pastures  and meadows, montane grassland and heath, steep-sided, rocky wadis, high steppe and are occasional around forests. They seem to prefer desolate, lightly-populated areas where predators who provide many bones, such as wolves and golden eagles, have healthy populations.

Like other vultures, it is a scavenger, feeding mostly on the remains of dead animals. It usually disdains the actual meat, however, and lives on a diet that is typically 85–90% bone marrow.

DIET

It is the only known vertebrate whose diet consists almost exclusively (85 to 90 percent) of bone.

LIFESPAN

Lifespan of 21.4 years, but have been observed to live for up to at least 45 years in captivity.