On May 13, two young Black Vultures were found outside of a post office in Fluvanna County – under very unusual circumstances! The birds were found in a big dog bowl, inside of a newspaper vending machine. The door to the machine was propped open with a Styrofoam cup. It’s unclear how the vultures came to be in this location, but the people who found the vultures thought it would be best to bring the birds to the Wildlife Center.
Baby vultures can be extremely challenging to care for – the risk of them imprinting on humans is quite high. The Wildlife Center staff work hard to reunite healthy young animals with their parents when possible, but in this situation, there were too many unknown factors. Fortunately, veterinary director Dr. Dave knew that his neighbor had an active Black Vulture nest in an old barn – not too far from where these two vultures were found! The staff decided that a fostering attempt was in order.
Fostering a healthy young animal with active parents of the same species can be a great tool for wildlife rehabilitators. Each fostering situation is different, and the age and number of offspring always need to be taken into consideration. Dr. Dave was unsure of the specifics of his neighbor’s active vulture nest, but after the two new admissions received a check-up, he packed them up and headed to the barn.
Dr. Dave reports, “I entered the barn with the vulture chicks in a cat carrier, and slowly climbed the ladder to the loft where the active vulture nest was. As soon as my head poked into the loft, an adult black vulture jumped onto a rafter and then exited through a hole in the roof.
“Remaining was a single, ticked-off vulture chick just slightly larger than the two new vulture chicks.
"When I crawled closer, the young vulture grunted and hissed. I carefully placed the two new chicks near the first, and the newbies initially crouched down but eventually raised their heads when I backed away. No aggression was noted.
“As I exited, I left three dead rats and fourteen mice to help supplement the parents’ efforts. I plan to go back again in the next few days to check on their status. I spoke with a colleague at Mercer County Wildlife Center (NJ), who has had vulture fostering success. She suggested I throw dead animals on the barn roof near the entrance in the future to help the parents. It's a good thing the barn owner is a friend!”
Follow-up and monitoring is an important part of any fostering attempt, so Dr. Dave checked the nest the following evening. He was happy to say that all three chicks were settled in with mom vulture. Dr. Dave and his neighbor will continue periodically check on the new family.