Scientific name: Gyps fulvus (Hablizl, 1783)
Bird group: Birds-of-prey
Field characters. Length 95-105 cm; wingspan 255-280 cm. Large vulture with very long, broad wings with well-spread primaries, very short, dark tail, small head, and underwings with pale bars across inner wing. Pale buff plumage contrasts with brown-black flight feathers and tail; head and neck covered with down; broad ruff at base of neck dull white. Juvenile darker brown with brown ruff; underwing-coverts paler. Soars on wings held in a shallow V.
Voice. Silent in flight; grunts and hisses in company.
Distribution. Fairly common in Spain and Portugal; elsewhere more local and scarce resident.
Habitat. Requires mountains or high cliffs for breeding and roosting; forages over large areas in mountainous terrain, deserts, or other dry terrain.
Food. Feeds almost exclusively on carrion, taken fresh or putrid, taking mainly soft tissues of medium to large mammals: domestic cow, horse, donkey, goat, sheep, deer, fox.
Eggs. Unmarked, rarely spotted, ground colour white, colour of markings red-brown/yellowish brown/pale violet-grey. Texture smooth, not glossy. Shape short subelliptical. Size 92 x 70 mm (82-106 x 64-75), weight 252 g.