Vultures

“And these you shall regard as an abomination among the birds; they shall not be eaten, they are an abomination: the eagle, the vulture, the buzzard…” [Leviticus 11:13]

Vultures have long been perceived as abominable creatures because of their repulsive feeding habits, but we are now beginning to better understand the important role these scavenging birds fulfill by “cleaning up” dead animals from our forests, fields, and roads. In fact, the Latin name for the turkey vulture is Cathartes aura, which means cleansing wind. It is true they eat dead carrion, but most people don’t know 50 percent of their diet consists of vegetation.

The vulture does its best to keep itself clean. Observations have shown that each bird spends from two to three hours a day preening itself. Also, they will bathe in water whenever they can, submerse, shake, and scrub for half an hour. Then they walk up on the bank and hold their wings out to the sun to dry.

Vultures can fly up to 200 miles a day, but they are also homebodies. Some families of vultures have been known to use the same roost for 100 years or more. For years the vulture has been classified as a bird of prey along with hawks, owls, and eagles. But in 1994, due to DNA analysis and other studies on anatomy, physiology, and behavior, the vulture has been reclassified and placed in the stork family.

The largest flying bird on Earth is a vulture, the Andean condor, with a wingspread of up to 12 feet. But the turkey vulture is probably the most graceful soaring bird in the world, reaching heights of 20,000 feet. Turkey vultures also have an extraordinary sense of smell, having the largest olfactory system of all birds. They have been known to smell carrion from over a mile away, which is very unique in the bird world. Most American vultures are voiceless birds, but they have very keen eyesight. It is believed they are able to spot a three-foot carcass from four miles away on the open plains. And when they find it, they will circle above it to notify their friends so they can enjoy their abominable picnic lunch together!

Jesus warned us that impostors would come to deceive us about the Second Coming. “For just as the lightning comes from the east and flashes even to the west, so will the coming of the Son of Man be. Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather” (Matthew 24:27,28 NASB). The living and true Christ will be seen by all when He comes, not just by a few bird watchers.