Massive flock of vultures

[Patricia Valdata]

I just went out to get the mail and was astonished to see a huge kettle of vultures soaring to our northeast, then streaming off to the southwest. Above them was another huge kettle. Easily more than 200 total, mixed Black and Turkey Vultures, likely many more that flew over before I went outside.

I've never seen anything like it here. Could these be very late migrants that stuck around because the fall was so mild?

Pat Valdata

Crisfield, Somerset County

[Janet Millenson]

Pat,

There's probably a large vulture roost somewhere in the vicinity. Late in the afternoon, especially in winter, it's not uncommon to see large flocks heading off together. Nearby residents are often less than thrilled, though, due to the mess the birds make plus the noise if they're stomping around on your roof! Some folks are also just plain freaked out by vultures and view them as ominous.

-Janet

--

---

Janet Millenson
Potomac, MD (Montgomery County)
ja...@twocrows.com

[Steve Long]

The real issue with large roosts of vultures and crows is the large amount of droppings that they leave all over the area under their roost spots.

Steve Long

--
-- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Group 'Maryland & DC Birding'.
To view group guidelines or change email preferences, visit this group on the web at http://www.mdbirding.com
Unfamiliar with a hotspot mentioned on this list? Quickly locate it here - http://www.mdbirding.com/hotspot.html
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Maryland & DC Birding" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to mdbirding+...@googlegroups.com.
To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/mdbirding/dfa492bd-bb01-4de3-b528-862137a2c4d4%40twocrows.com.

[Clayton Koonce]

For a couple of years, I've been watching a black vulture roost at a pair of cell towers on Baltimore National Pike in Howard County. (My latest list is linked below.) Other birders have noted this roost also. The birds prefer one tower, sometimes landing on the other tower as they arrive then joining the roost. One evening last winter, I listed at least 80 vultures in the roost, flagged for high count and accepted. Early last year, authorities decorated the tower with deterrents in the form of two large raptor silhouettes, one of them designed to swing around in the wind. This seemed to cut down on larger gatherings and for a while recently I didn't seen any vultures on the towers. Then yesterday evening a few were present. (You can see one of the fake raptors in my photos in the link.)

I expect that the vultures are damaging equipment on that tower, and I understand that they like to peck at rubber components. What is the attraction of rubber?  After the raptor figures were attached last year, I later saw workers on the tower but was not sure what they were doing -- repairs, installing other deterrents, or both.

Clayton Koonce

Columbia, Maryland

member, Howard County Bird Club

https://ebird.org/checklist/S159653944