What is she, the largest bird of prey? What is it called, where does it live? What are the features of her behavior? These questions will be answered below. The article will provide comprehensive information about which bird is the largest of the predators.
First information
Science knows many birds of prey, including quite large birds. But only one of them is a recognized champion among birds. According to scientists, the Andean condor surpasses them all in its size. About its features, habitat, lifestyle and, of course, size, will be discussed in the article.
Andean condor (in Latin its name sounds like Vultur gryphus) lives in South America. For the first time, this gigantic, respectful bird was described by a Spanish historian, priest, and geographer named Pedro Cieza de Leon in his book The Chronicle of Peru. Europeans, when they first saw these magnificent creatures, were shocked not only by their size, but also by their ability to climb to great heights. Travelers noted that sometimes only by soaring high in the sky, at an altitude of several thousand meters, the condor could be judged on the presence of life in the area.
Name History
The bird owes its name to the Quechua tribe, in the language of which it sounded like Cuntur (kúntur). This information is contained in a dictionary published in 1607 of this dialect.
In science, the bird was first described by Karl Linnaeus in his famous work "System of Nature", the 10th edition of which took place in 1758. Thanks to this scientist, Condor got its modern Latin name. Vultur translated from Latin is a vulture.
Relative to the current systematics of this bird, scientists have no consensus. Some tend to attribute the Andean condor and six other similar species to the same family, called American vultures. However, other scientists do not agree with this opinion, citing the fact that all six species are not related to each other, but have only external similarity and similar habitat. In fact, they came from completely different, sometimes very distant from each other ancestors. Therefore, there are different opinions about which squad and family should include this largest bird of prey in the world. So, other researchers classify it as the Falconiformes, and the third - Ciconiiformes. Officially, the status of the largest bird of prey on the planet remains uncertain.
Area of resettlement
As the name implies, the Andean condor lives in South America, in the Andes, on the territory of Bolivia, Chile, Peru, Argentina and Ecuador. In the north, this is mainly the upper mountain belt, alpine plains (3000-5000 meters above sea level), in the south - foothills. Birds have chosen the flat places covered with grass and low stunted trees, the so-called paramos, located between the levels of forests and snow. There are many lakes on them. The extreme point of the feathered range in the south is Tierra del Fuego.
Description
Andean condors are expressive in black and white. In this case, only the fluffy collar on the neck and the tips of the long feathers of the feathers remain white. The main color of the bird is black, shiny.
On her head, like all scavengers, feathers are missing. The skin can have various shades, from pink to brown. The sharp hooked beak is well suited for tearing food. The legs are dark gray. Unlike many other predators, Andean condors cannot strike paws and raise prey in claws - their legs are weak for this.
The eyes of males are brown, females are dark red. The main decoration of males is a fleshy crest of dark red color. Young birds have a lighter plumage - brown, not black, but darker skin on the head.
Lifestyle
Andean condor is a scavenger predator, and this fact determines its entire lifestyle. In search of food, birds can soar above the ground for hours, only occasionally resting. According to the observations of scientists, in half an hour of flight the bird may never flap its wings, adhering to the warm air currents. This style of flight is connected with the structural features of the body of the condor. He has rather weak pectoral muscles and a small sternum. It is difficult for birds to take off from the ground, so they rest mainly on the rocks so that they can fly up from them without gaining height. In search of food, condors can travel up to 200 kilometers per day.
They feed on the remains of predatory animals, as well as marine mammals and fish thrown ashore. They can ruin bird's nests. They use their extremely keen eyesight for food searches. They can observe the behavior of other birds, using their "tips". Near the carcass of the animal, the condor remains as long as possible. He cannot take food with him in his claws due to the peculiarities of the structure of his legs, and if he flies away, they will eat it without him. Although the Andean condor population is small, there are many other scavengers in nature that compete with them. According to scientists, condors can eat several kilograms of food at a time, and then it can be difficult for them to take to the air.
Breeding
Andean condor lives up to 50 years, and throughout this time does not change the pair. Bird nests are arranged on rocks in inaccessible places. The female lays one, less often two eggs, in February-March in a rock cavity covered with twigs. Both parents hatch them in turn for 54-58 days. If the egg was stolen or broken, the female will lay one more.
Andean condors breed, usually once every two years. The male’s ritual behavior is interesting: he performs a peculiar dance in front of the chosen female, hissing and bouncing on the spot.
Hatched chicks are not covered with feathers, but with thick gray fluff. Parents feed them with partially digested carrion, which they belch out of the stomach. Feathers in the young generation grow when the chicks reach the size of adult condors. They learn to fly from six months. They usually stay with their parents for up to two years, until they begin a new breeding cycle.
