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title: "What the sources say about the Bearded Vulture | AnimalTracks.wiki"
description: "54 claims from the Bearded Vulture profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it."
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# What the sources say about the Bearded Vulture (*Gypaetus barbatus*)

> 54 claims from the Bearded Vulture profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it. A "..." marks a cut in a quote and [brackets] an insertion.

Profile: [Bearded Vulture](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/bearded-vulture/)

## Bearded Vulture. The Peregrine Fund.

https://www.peregrinefund.org/explore-raptors-species/vultures/bearded-vulture

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| One of the few vertebrates that lives mostly on bone | one of the few, if only vertebrate, whose diet consists largely of bones and bone marrow |
| its body runs 94 to 125 cm (37 to 49 in) long, its wings span 231 to 283 cm (7.6 to 9.3 ft), and it weighs 4.5 to 7.1 kg (9.9 to 15.6 lb) | Body length: 94–125 cm (37-49 in) / Wingspan: 231–283 cm (91-111 in) / Weight: 4500–7100 g (158-250 oz) (note: 91-111 in converted to 7.6-9.3 ft; 4500-7100 g converted to 4.5-7.1 kg; 158-250 oz converted to 9.9-15.6 lb) |
| Its German name, "Lammergeier," means "sheep vulture," | The Bearded Vulture is also known as Lammergeier. However, Lammergeier means "sheep vulture" in German |
| unlike most vultures, its head is feathered | Though most vultures have featherless heads, the Bearded Vulture does not! |
| Up to 90 percent of its diet is bone | up to 90% of its diet is made up of bones |
| A bone too large to swallow | If they find a bone that is too large, they will carry it high up into the sky and drop it onto rocks below. This helps break up the bones into smaller, ingestible pieces. |
| Researchers have seen them drop turtles onto rocks to kill and eat them | Researchers have also observed Bearded Vultures carrying turtles into the air and dropping them onto rocks to kill and eat them |
| turtles, dropped onto rocks | Researchers have also observed Bearded Vultures carrying turtles into the air and dropping them onto rocks to kill and eat them. |
| up to 90% of its diet | up to 90% of its diet is made up of bones |
| It had died out in the Alps by the start of the 20th century, and The Peregrine Fund describes the reintroduction programs since then as successful | the population of Bearded Vulture in the Alps was completely extinct by the beginning of the 20th century. However, since then, people and organizations, such as the Foundation for the Conservation of the Bearded Vulture, have been working hard to conserve this vulture and have engaged in reintroduction programs that have been successful |
| The bearded vulture (*Gypaetus barbatus*) eats bones. | up to 90% of its diet is made up of bones. |

## AnAge entry for Gypaetus barbatus. AnAge: The Animal Ageing and Longevity Database, Human Ageing Genomic Resources.

https://genomics.senescence.info/species/entry.php?species=Gypaetus_barbatus

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| The oldest on record lived 40 years in captivity | The maximum lifespan recorded for these animals is 40 years, when in captivity |
| southern African records report wild birds reaching almost 11 | it has been reported that these animals can reach almost 11 years of age in the wild ... SAFRING longevity and movement records for southern African vultures (note: the second passage is the title of AnAge's reference [1343], the source it gives for the wild figure) |

## Gypaetus barbatus (bearded vulture). Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan.

https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Gypaetus_barbatus/

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| which it breaks open by dropping it from the sky | Large bones are picked up by their talons, lifted up 50 to 150 m in the air, and carried over to rocky bone-dropping sites called ossuaries. Here they are dropped repeatedly until they break open |
| from an old assumption that birds seen carrying large bones had killed livestock | as bearded vultures were often seen carrying large animal bones, they were assumed to kill farmers' livestock. An old, common name for these birds is "Lammergeier" |
| Long black bristles at the base of its bill look like a beard | long, broad black bristles at the base of the bill that resemble a beard |
| It lives in mountains from the Pyrenees to India, Tibet, China and southern Siberia, and in Africa from Ethiopia's highlands to Lesotho and South Africa | The range of bearded vultures extends across southern Europe and Asia, from as far east as the Pyrenees mountains of Spain to as far west as India and Tibet, south-central China, and southern Siberia. They can also be found across the Ethiopian highlands, as well as in northeast Uganda, west Kenya, Lesotho and southeastern South Africa ... Bearded vultures can be found at high elevations in mountainous regions |
| between 300 and 4,500 meters up but most often above 2,000 | They reside between 300 and 4,500 meters above sea level, though most frequently above 2,000 meters. |
| Mountain cliffs and gorges | They often inhabit desolate areas containing cliffs, precipices, or gorges |
| between 300 and 4,500 meters" | They reside between 300 and 4,500 meters above sea level |
| is carried 50 to 150 meters up in its talons and dropped repeatedly onto rocky sites called ossuaries until it breaks open and the marrow, the soft fatty tissue inside, can be eaten | Large bones are picked up by their talons, lifted up 50 to 150 m in the air, and carried over to rocky bone-dropping sites called ossuaries. Here they are dropped repeatedly until they break open and bone marrow can be consumed. (note: 'soft fatty tissue' is a definition of marrow for readers, not a sourced figure) |
| They let other scavengers finish eating first, so they often feed on older carcasses | Bearded vultures will wait patiently at a cliff edge until other scavengers have finished eating, and will not compete for food. As a result, they often feed on older carcasses (note: 'so' restates the source's 'As a result') |
| A bearded vulture's head is naturally cream to pale yellow | The forehead is a cream color, while the rest of the head is a maize color (note: 'pale yellow' restates 'maize'; 'naturally' rests on the next sentence of the source, which attributes the orange to bathing) |
| The rusty orange often seen on its neck and belly comes from bathing in iron-rich water | often becoming more of a rusty orange color on the neck and abdomen. This rufous coloration is caused by bathing in iron-rich water |
| Large bones are carried in the vulture's talons 50 to 150 meters into the air and dropped onto rocky bone-dropping sites called ossuaries, again and again, until they break open and the marrow inside can be eaten. | Large bones are picked up by their talons, lifted up 50 to 150 m in the air, and carried over to rocky bone-dropping sites called ossuaries. Here they are dropped repeatedly until they break open and bone marrow can be consumed. |
| lifts large bones 50 to 150 meters into the air in its talons and drops them onto rock, again and again, until they break open | Large bones are picked up by their talons, lifted up 50 to 150 m in the air, and carried over to rocky bone-dropping sites called ossuaries. Here they are dropped repeatedly until they break open (note: vibe.reason (#403); replaces 'striking cosmetic vanity' (Margalida et al. 2019 conclude the colour is status signalling), 'rust-dyed red' (the dye is orange) and the unsourced 'soars over snowy crags') |

## Margalida & Villalba (2017). The importance of the nutritive value of old bones in the diet of Bearded vultures Gypaetus barbatus. Scientific Reports.

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-017-08812-2

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| digests in a stomach whose pH could be below 1 | The pH levels in Bearded Vultures' stomachs are unknown, but could be less than 1 judging by the stomach pH of 0.7 reported for Gyps africanus |
| A stomach whose pH could be below 1, and dropping bones from the sky to break them open for the marrow inside | The pH levels in Bearded Vultures' stomachs are unknown, but could be less than 1 (note: the bone-dropping half is claim 'which it breaks open by dropping it from the sky' (ADW: dropped repeatedly until they break open and bone marrow can be consumed)) |
| it may be the only vertebrate that lives this way | The Bearded Vulture Gypaetus barbatus is the only species with a bone-diet based |
| One study found fresh bone holds about 8 percent more energy than the same weight of fresh meat | fresh bones contain 108% of the energy provided by fresh meat (note: 108% restated as 8% more; the comparison is per 100 g (mutton meat 514 kJ/100 g)) |
| sheep and pig bones left in the open air for over three months | dry sheep and pig bones that had been left in the open air (note: the passage continues 'for > 3 months (range 3–12 months)', written with thin spaces the matcher cannot read; the table labels the same bones 'Dry (>3 months)') |
| kept 90 percent of the protein of fresh ones | dry bones retain 90% of the protein found in fresh bones |
| The bearded vulture's stomach wall is packed with acid-secreting cells, but in 2017 its pH | The Bearded Vulture's stomach wall contains a high density of acid-secreting cells ... The pH levels in Bearded Vultures' stomachs are unknown (note: 'packed' restates 'high density'; 2017 is the paper's year) |
| A study that year suggested it could be below pH 1, judging by a pH of 0.7 reported for the white-backed vulture | The pH levels in Bearded Vultures' stomachs are unknown, but could be less than 1 judging by the stomach pH of 0.7 reported for Gyps africanus (note: Gyps africanus is the white-backed vulture; 'below' restates 'less than') |
| Digesting bone is estimated to take about 24 hours | Bone is a dense food and it has been estimated that it takes 24 hr to digest |
| Its stomach wall is packed with acid-secreting cells, which probably make it highly acidic, but a 2017 study noted that its pH | The Bearded Vulture's stomach wall contains a high density of acid-secreting cells, and probably creates a highly acidic environment ... The pH levels in Bearded Vultures' stomachs are unknown |
| The authors suggested it could be below pH 1, judging by the pH of 0.7 reported for the white-backed vulture. | The pH levels in Bearded Vultures' stomachs are unknown, but could be less than 1 judging by the stomach pH of 0.7 reported for Gyps africanus (note: Gyps africanus is the white-backed vulture) |
| Digesting bone has been estimated to take about 24 hours. | it has been estimated that it takes 24 hr to digest |

## Margalida, Bertran & Heredia (2009). Diet and food preferences of the endangered Bearded Vulture Gypaetus barbatus: a basis for their conservation. Ibis.

https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1474-919x.2008.00904.x

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| A study of breeding bearded vultures in the Pyrenees during chick-rearing found their diet was 93 percent mammal, 6 percent bird and 1 percent reptile | The Bearded Vulture Gypaetus barbatus population in the Pyrenees ... This study investigated both aspects through direct and unbiased observation of breeding Bearded Vultures during the chick‐rearing period. Bearded Vulture diet comprises mammals (93%), birds (6%) and reptiles (1%) |
| Medium-sized hoofed animals, mainly sheep and goats, made up 61 percent | with medium‐sized ungulates (mainly sheep/goats) the most important species in the diet (61%, n = 677) (note: 'hoofed animals' defines 'ungulates') |
| They prefer limbs and avoid the remains of cows and horses, probably because of the costs of handling, swallowing and carrying them | with the remains of larger species (cows and horses) being avoided, probably due to the variable cost/benefit ratios in handling efficiency, ingestion process and transport ... Bearded Vultures prefer to eat limbs (note: 'swallowing' restates 'ingestion process', 'carrying' restates 'transport'; the source's 'probably' is kept) |
| sheep and goat limbs | medium‐sized ungulates (mainly sheep/goats) the most important species in the diet ... Bearded Vultures prefer to eat limbs |

## Margalida et al. (2019). Cosmetic colouring by Bearded Vultures Gypaetus barbatus: still no evidence for an antibacterial function. PeerJ.

https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.6783

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| wild birds regularly use springs rich in iron oxides, the compounds in rust, to stain their feathers | We now know for sure that wild Bearded Vultures regularly make use of ferruginous springs for staining purposes (note: 'the compounds in rust' defines iron oxides; ferruginous = containing iron oxides, as in the paper's 'ferruginous waters containing iron oxides') |
| Offered red baths, all 16 captive birds at a Spanish breeding center used them within hours and ignored clean water for weeks | offered red baths to 16 captive Bearded Vultures kept at a breeding facility in southern Spain ... All of them bathed in the newly provided ferruginous baths within the first few hours, ignoring the clean water baths for weeks afterwards. |
| A 2019 study found no sign that the dye protects feathers from bacteria | Cosmetic colouring by Bearded Vultures Gypaetus barbatus: still no evidence for an antibacterial function (note: the paper's title; 2019 is its publication year) |
| stained feathers broke down no more slowly than unstained ones in lab tests | by applying feather-degrading bacteria to stained and unstained bearded vulture feathers ... the in vitro addition of feather degrading Bacillus licheniformis to naturally stained Bearded Vulture feathers did not retard feather degradation compared to controls |
| breeding success did not differ between territories held by orange and pale birds | breeding success did not differ between territories occupied by pale individuals versus orange ones |
| Its authors concluded that in adults the color mainly signals status at breeding sites, and secondarily helps a bird compete for a mate | we conclude that the primary function of applied colouration in adult Bearded Vultures is that of status signalling at breeding sites, with a secondary function in enhancing their competitive ability to find a mate |
| The color is dye. | free-ranging Bearded Vultures have finally been observed bathing naturally in ferruginous waters containing iron oxides, and thereby actively dying their plumage |
| Wild bearded vultures regularly bathe in springs rich in iron oxides to stain their feathers. | We now know for sure that wild Bearded Vultures regularly make use of ferruginous springs for staining purposes |
| A 2019 study found no evidence that the dye protects feathers from bacteria | Cosmetic colouring by Bearded Vultures Gypaetus barbatus: still no evidence for an antibacterial function (note: the paper's title; 2019 is its publication year) |
| breeding success was no different in territories held by orange birds than in those held by pale ones | breeding success did not differ between territories occupied by pale individuals versus orange ones |
| Its authors concluded that in adults the color mainly signals status at breeding sites. | we conclude that the primary function of applied colouration in adult Bearded Vultures is that of status signalling at breeding sites |

## Westrip et al. (2022). Gypaetus barbatus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2022: e.T22695174A210519978.

https://doi.org/10.2305/iucn.uk.2022-1.rlts.t22695174a210519978.en

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| lists it as Near Threatened | IUCN Red List category: Near Threatened (NT). |