Van Posted September 25, 2019 Share Posted September 25, 2019 We saw this bird in Ann Arbor, MI yesterday (24 September). Shortly after the picure was taken, it spread very wide wings and flew to the top of a nearby tree, so it is not as flightless as its appearance would lead one to suspect. Can anyone tell us what it is? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gidewey52 Posted September 25, 2019 Share Posted September 25, 2019 Turkey or Black vulture? Jerry Waverly Hall, GA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hbvol50 Posted September 25, 2019 Share Posted September 25, 2019 looks like a black vulture 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Posted September 25, 2019 Share Posted September 25, 2019 Welcome to Whatbird! Agree with Black Vulture. https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Black_Vulture/id Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobinHood Posted September 25, 2019 Share Posted September 25, 2019 This one has my attention. To be honest my first reaction was pigeon/Rock Dove but the Black Vulture suggestions made me wonder, although the legs look wrong. Black Vultures are not even in my usual Ontario (a close Michigan neighbour) guides but there have been some sightings not too long ago. Looking at Ann Arbor there are some (mostly at the Detroit Zoo - how do these even appear in eBird?) but it would still be somewhat rare? Intrigued to see if there any other suggestions. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Van Posted September 26, 2019 Author Share Posted September 26, 2019 Thanks, all! Black vulture makes sense, and in discussing it with my wife (who saw the bird and snapped the picture), she seems to recall a featherless head, which would pretty much clinch it. Turkey vultures are fairly common around here, but like RobinHood, I'm puzzled by the location for a black. iBird shows the distribution far south of Michigan, though https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Black_Vulture/id says " Black Vultures have substantially increased their range northward in recent decades." Has anyone else seen them this far north? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kerri Posted September 26, 2019 Share Posted September 26, 2019 What about juvenile Turkey Vulture? They have a bald grey head. I see both Black Vultures and Turkey Vultures here where I live and the Turkey Vultures always have that "fluffed" bronze back end that the bird in your photo appears to have. https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Turkey_Vulture/id 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BarbetSmith Posted September 26, 2019 Share Posted September 26, 2019 23 hours ago, RobinHood said: Looking at Ann Arbor there are some (mostly at the Detroit Zoo - how do these even appear in eBird?) but it would still be somewhat rare? Are they reports of captive birds in enclosures at the zoo? If so, someone is using eBird wrong. If it's considered rare there, the reviewer should have caught that. But it's also common to report the wild birds outdoors that aren't part of the zoo collection, since a zoo is basically a big park/garden. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phalarope713 Posted September 27, 2019 Share Posted September 27, 2019 16 hours ago, Kerri said: What about juvenile Turkey Vulture? They have a bald grey head. I see both Black Vultures and Turkey Vultures here where I live and the Turkey Vultures always have that "fluffed" bronze back end that the bird in your photo appears to have. https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Turkey_Vulture/id Agreed. I'm not sure Turkey Vulture can be eliminated here, and Turkey seems much more likely than Black in MI. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Posted September 27, 2019 Share Posted September 27, 2019 14 hours ago, Phalarope713 said: I'm not sure Turkey Vulture can be eliminated here, and Turkey seems much more likely than Black in MI. Yes. I think it should be left Turkey/ Black Vulture. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akiley Posted September 27, 2019 Share Posted September 27, 2019 This is a Turkey Vulture. Black Vultures are all black on the body, as well as head. Both of those are clearly not black here. As stated prior, Black Vulture is completely unexpected in this location. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobinHood Posted September 28, 2019 Share Posted September 28, 2019 FWIW juvenile Turkey Vulture seen today with an adult in Southern Ontario. Not always easy to see the colour of the head as they are typically backlit (I wasn't sure I could spell "in silhouette"). 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birdbrain22 Posted September 29, 2019 Share Posted September 29, 2019 The bird in the original post is 100% a Turkey Vulture. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Leukering Posted October 14, 2019 Share Posted October 14, 2019 Note the pale legs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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