Hooded Vulture

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It breeds in a stick nest in trees (often palms) in much of Africa south of the Sahara. laying one egg. Birds may form loose colonies. The population is mostly resident.

Like other vultures it is a scavenger, feeding mostly from carcasses of dead animals and waste which it finds by soaring over savannah and around human habitation, including waste tips and abattoirs.

It often moves in flocks, and is very abundant. In much of its range, there are always several visible soaring in the sky during the day. It is typically unafraid of humans, and is sometimes referred to as the “garbage collector” by locals.

Hooded vulture is a typical vulture, with a bald pink head, with a greyish “hood”. It has broad wings and short tail. It is a small species. It has fairly uniform dark brown plumage.