I used to be introduced up in the old-fashioned through which the established dogma, when it got here to European vultures a minimum of, was that there was a hierarchy when it got here to feeding at carcasses. The story went one thing like this. The biggest and strongest species – the Cinereous Vulture (Aegypius monachus) – was the primary to reach. If not first, a minimum of the others needed to look ahead to this highly effective fowl to tear the carcass open. This may then enable different vultures to feed. The Griffon Vultures (Gyps fulvus) got here subsequent they usually gorged themselves on the carcass as soon as the Cinereous Vulture had made means. Subsequent got here the massive Bearded Vulture (Gypaetus barbatus) who solely took bones and subsequently needed to wait till the carcass had been picked clear. Lastly, the small Egyptian Vulture (Neophron percnopterus) would are available on the finish to take the leftovers from the get together.
A current paper appears to corroborate this image. Not less than it exhibits that the most important, and by implication strongest, species are dominant and most aggressive. There may be additionally an adult-juvenile hierarchy inside species. All this makes intuitive sense and will maintain some fact however I’ve spent a few years observing these 4 species and I’m not satisfied that the story is that this neat.
For starters Griffon Vultures are completely able to dispatching a carcass with out having to attend for a Cinereous Vulture to reach. They do that by beginning to open the carcass up alongside the weakest level, often the anus, the mouth or the eyes. Second, Cinereous Vultures might be the extra highly effective of the 2 however, confronted with overwhelming numbers of Griffons, they often give means. Third, the ability of the Cinereous Vulture anatomy permits them to eat components of the carcass that Griffons can not deal with, or select to not go for. These components embody tendons, for instance, and I’ve typically seen Cinereous Vultures on the periphery of a carcass ready from the Griffons to go away and go away these tasty morsels. So perhaps all this energy is for consuming the components which are inaccessible to different vultures and never for dominating on the carcass, or a mixture of each.
What in regards to the Egyptian Vulture? That is the smallest species and socially subordinate. However are we taking a look at all this the mistaken means? Egyptian Vultures typically arrive with the bigger vultures. They don’t wait in accordance with the prescribed plan set out by ornithologists. They usually leap straight into the mêlée. Possibly they don’t seem to be essentially the most highly effective however they’re adept at weaving their means around the squabbling Griffons and stealing the items that they’re after. They could be socially subordinate however they’re intelligent and skillful they usually typically get their means.
If one species suits the plan it’s the Bearded Vulture. It at all times arrives final however, then once more, why ought to it arrive any sooner? It solely eats bones so there’s no level coming in too quickly. If a Bearded Vulture arrives whereas different vultures are nonetheless feeding, it tends to hold across the fringe of the primary mass of vultures. Does this make the Bearded Vulture socially subordinate to the opposite vultures? Not essentially.
All this goes to indicate how cautious we now have to be when making sweeping statements about something in Nature. Most of the time the animals themselves show us mistaken and all it might have taken would have been cautious commentary within the discipline within the first place. There isn’t any substitute for that, not even digital camera traps though these would possibly assist us significantly. You probably have an opportunity to have a look at vultures carefully, see what you discover. If you happen to get to see different vultures in different components of the world, try to see if there’s a sample to their behaviour at a carcass.
