BIRDS of THE WORLD - An Online Bird Book
RAPTORS
New World Vultures
Order Accipitriformes Family Cathartidae
RAPTORS
Raptors are carnivorous. They hunt by sight during the day, are long lived, and have low reproductive rates. The catch their prey via strong claws – three pointing forward and one pointing backward. The raptors that hunt by day are: hawks, eagle, kites, vultures, falcons. Owls hunt by night. Raptors are also called birds of prey.
Order Accipitriformes, family Accipitridae: hawks, eagles, kites, Old World vultures.
Order Accipitriformes, family Cathartidae: New World vultures
Order Strigiformes, family Strigidae: owls
Order Accipitriformes, family Accipitridae: hawks, eagles, kites, Old World vultures.
Order Accipitriformes, family Cathartidae: New World vultures
Also Accipitriformes: ospreys ( family Pandionidae); secretary bird (family Sagittariidae)
Order Falconiformes, family Falconidae: falconsOrder Strigiformes, family Strigidae: owls
New World Vultures
Order Accipitriformes Family Cathartidae
The Cathartidae family contains the New World vultures. They are not closely related to Old World Vultures. They resemble each other because of convergent evolution. Vultures in general feed on dead animals. They tend to have bald heads to minimize the feathers that get contaminated from carrion. New World Vulture have a good sense of smell which they use to help locate their meals.
Genus Cathartes
Vulture, Greater Yellow-headed Cathartes melambrotus Found: South America
Greater Yellow-headed has black plumage. The head and neck, which are featherless, range in color from deep yellow to pale orange. It lacks a syrinx, and its vocalizations are therefore limited to grunts or low hisses.
Simillar to: Lesser Yellow-headed Vulture. Greater Yellow-headed Vulture is larger than Lesser Yellow-headed Vulture and is also darker.
Image by: 1) Charlie Westerinen 2, 3) Dave Curtis - GuyanaSimillar to: Lesser Yellow-headed Vulture. Greater Yellow-headed Vulture is larger than Lesser Yellow-headed Vulture and is also darker.
Vulture, Lesser Yellow-headed Cathartes burrovianus Found: Central and South America
Lesser Yellow-headed Vulture plumage is black, and the head and neck, which are featherless, are pale orange with red or blue areas. It lacks a syrinx, so therefore its vocalizations are limited to grunts or low hisses.
Simillar to: Greater Yellow-headed Vulture. Greater Yellow-headed Vulture is larger than Lesser Yellow-headed Vulture and is also darker.
Image by: 1) Cláudio Timm - Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil 2) Lip Kee Yap - Ibera Marshes, Argentina 3) Cristiano Crolle - Esteros del Iberà, Argentina 4) Jerry Oldenettel - Belize 5) Dilson Santos - Brazil 6) Shane McCann - Belize Simillar to: Greater Yellow-headed Vulture. Greater Yellow-headed Vulture is larger than Lesser Yellow-headed Vulture and is also darker.
Vulture, Turkey also Turkey Buzzard Cathartes aura Found: The Americas
The Turkey Vulture has brownish-black plumage with whitish flight feathers underneath; small red head.
Similar to: Black Vulture. The Turkey Vulture has much more white on the underside of its wings. The Black Vuluture has a "prettier" face.
Image by: 1) Dori - Florida 2) Ken Slade - Texas 3) Cristiano Crolle - Esteros del Iberà, Argentina 4, 5, 6) Dick Daniels - North Carolina 7, 8) Dick - Carolina Raptor CenterSimilar to: Black Vulture. The Turkey Vulture has much more white on the underside of its wings. The Black Vuluture has a "prettier" face.
7, 8) Leucistic Turkey Vultures (that is, whitish Turkey Vultures)
Genus Coragyps - 1 species
Vulture, Black also American Black Vulture Coragyps atratus Found: The Americas
The Black Vulture has black plumage; gray head, neck.
Similar to: Turkey Vulture. The Turkey Vulture has much more white on the underside of its wings. The Black Vuluture has a "prettier" face.
Image by: 1, 6) Dick Daniels - Florida 2) Dick - Ecuador
3) Sandy Cole - Flamingo Gardens in Florida 4) Charlie Westerinen 5) Dick - South Carolina 7, 8, 9) Dick - Pedasi, Panama 10) Dick - ChileSimilar to: Turkey Vulture. The Turkey Vulture has much more white on the underside of its wings. The Black Vuluture has a "prettier" face.
Genus Gymnogyps - 1 species
Condor, California Gymnogyps californianus Found: California, Arizona
Plumage of the California Condor is black with patches of white on the underside of the wings and the head is largely bald, with skin color ranging from gray on young birds to yellow and bright orange on breeding adults.
Image by: 1) Joseph Brandt, USFWS 2) Nathan Rupert - San Diego Zoo 3) Thomas Cantwell 4, 5, 6, 7) Dick Daniels - Arizona at the Grand Canyon 
1) Adult with 30 day chick 2) Juvenile
Genus Sarcoramphus - 1 species
Vulture, King Sarcoramphus papa Found: South America
Large and predominantly white, the King Vulture has gray to black ruff, flight, and tail feathers. The head and neck are bald, with the skin color varying, including yellow, orange, blue, purple, and red. The King Vulture has a very noticeable yellow fleshy caruncle on its beak.
Image by: 1) Eric Kilby - Washington National Zoo 2) B Miry 3) William Wan 4) Barloventomagico - Venezuela
Genus Vultur - 1 species
Condor, Andean Vultur gryphus Found: South America
The Andean Condor is a large black vulture with a ruff of white feathers surrounding the base of the neck and, especially in the male, large white patches on the wings. The head and neck are nearly featherless, and are a dull red color, which may flush and therefore change color in response to the bird's emotional state. In the male, there is a wattle on the neck and a large, dark red comb or caruncle on the crown of the head.
Image by: 1) Nathan Rupert 2) Dick Daniels - National Aviary 3) Sergey_Pisarevskiy - Columbia 4) Drriss and Marrionn 
