Black Vultures #15-0706 & #15-0707

Species Name (EN): 
Species Name (LA): 
Admission Date: 
May 13, 2015
Release Date: 
May 13, 2015
Location of Rescue: 
Fluvanna County, Virginia
Cause of Admission / Condition: 
Orphaned/kidnapped?
Prognosis: 
Outcome: 
Successfully fostered!
Patient Status: 
Patient Archive

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.

Your special donation will help support the staff in future fostering endeavors ... and will help care for the 2,500 patients the Wildlife Center will admit this year. 

Updates

July 20, 2015

This past weekend, Dr. Dave was able to visit the Black Vulture family and check on the fostered chicks.

When Dr. Dave entered the barn, he noticed all three chicks were perched near the edge of the barn’s loft and were peering down at the ground below. Black Vultures fledge around 90 days and while the young birds still have some down, their tail and primary flight feathers are coming in nicely.






Since the barn-owner is moving and selling the property, it is likely Dr. Dave’s most recent check-up will be the last one. If the new owners do not want the vultures on their property, they have been instructed to contact the Wildlife Center to figure out the best plan of action. The young vultures will likely fledge in about three weeks. 
 

July 8, 2015

Dr. Dave and his neighbor have visited the Black Vulture family a few times during the past month, just to quickly peek in on the family and ensure all is well.

In mid-June, Dr. Dave took this photo of the growing vulture chicks:

And on July 7, Dr. Dave’s neighbor checked again. While the chicks are still fluffy, there are a lot of adult feathers under all that down!


May 29, 2015

After the May 22 visit to the vulture family, Dr. Dave’s neighbor reported that the rat gifts left for the vultures were gone within 24 hours.

Dr. Dave made another visit on May 27. He reports:

“I went over after work today armed with six more rat-cicles. Believe it or not, it was hard to make them ”stick” up there. It took about 15 tosses to get them up there without rolling back down.

“Before throwing up the new food, I quietly went into the barn and crept up the ladder. No parents were present this time but there was a fuzzy ball of vulture chick tucked into the corner.

“At first, I could clearly see two black heads, and after a few minutes of watching, a third head popped up in the middle of the vulture ball. All three happy and healthy … if that’s what you call standing next to a petrified carcass of something …”

May 25, 2015

In the week since the two Black Vulture chicks were fostered onto their new family, Dr. Dave and his neighbor have checked on the vultures four different times. On Friday, May 22, Dr. Dave went out again – with some dead rats for supplemental feeding.

Dr. Dave reported that all three vulture chicks were in the barn loft and had grown quite a bit! He did not have his camera with him, but was able to take a photo with his phone. Dr. Dave was able to successfully lob several dead rats onto the roof of the barn, which should assist the vulture parents with feeding their new offspring.



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