Taken 28-Dec-08
Visitors 7
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Photo Info
Dimensions1911 x 2077
Original file size1.15 MB
Image typeJPEG
Color spacesRGB
Date taken29-Dec-08 03:14
Date modified8-May-11 06:06
Shooting Conditions
Camera makeNIKON CORPORATION
Camera modelNIKON D80
Focal length200 mm
Focal length (35mm)300 mm
Max lens aperturef/5.7
Exposure1/125 at f/8
FlashNot fired
Exposure bias0 EV
Exposure modeAuto
Exposure prog.Unknown
ISO speedISO 100
Metering modePattern
Digital zoom1x
A wake (group of feeding vultures) of White-backed Vultures (Gyps africanus) eating the carcass of a Wildebeest. Serengeti National Park. East Africa 2009 © Nora de Angelli / www.noraphotos.com
The White-backed Vulture (Gyps africanus) is an Old World vulture in the family Accipitridae, which also includes eagles, kites, buzzards and hawks. It is closely related to the European Griffon Vulture, G. fulvus. Sometimes it is called African White-backed Vulture to distinguish it from the Oriental White-backed Vulture—nowadays usually called Indian White-rumped Vulture--to which it was formerly believed to be closely related.
The White-backed Vulture is a typical vulture, with only down feathers on the head and neck, very broad wings and short tail feathers. It has a white neck ruff. The adult’s whitish back contrasts with the otherwise dark plumage. Juveniles are largely dark. This is a medium-sized vulture; its body mass is 4.2 to 7.2 kilograms (9.3–16 lb), it is 78 to 98 cm (31 to 39 in) long and has a 1.96 to 2.25 m (6 to 7 ft) wingspan.
Like other vultures it is a scavenger, feeding mostly from carcasses of animals which it finds by soaring over savannah. It also takes scraps from human habitations. It often moves in flocks. It breeds in trees on the savannah of west and east Africa, laying one egg. The population is mostly resident.
As it is rarer than previously believed, its conservation status was reassessed from Least Concern to Near Threatened in the 2007 IUCN Red List.
© Nora Photos