Tom Vezo / Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura) perching on Cardon (Pachycereus pringlei) cactus, sunning itself with wings spread, Sonora, Mexico

Rolf Nussbaumer / Turkey vulture sunning and calling in tree {Cathartes aura} Texas, USA.

Gabriel Rojo / Turkey vulture (Cathartes aura) scavenging on Patagonian fox (Lycalopex griseus) carcass. Chubut, Patagonia, Argentina. April.

Gabriel Rojo / Turkey vulture (Cathartes aura). Chubut, Patagonia, Argentina. April.

Claudio Contreras / Prehistoric rock painting of Pronghorn antelope and Turkey vulture. La Pintada cave. San Francisco Sierra, El Vizcaino Biosphere Reserve, Baja California Peninsula, Mexico, March

JIM CLARE / Turkey vultures (Cathartes aura) feeding on dead sealion. Punta San Juan Reserve, (Reserva Nacional de Islas, Islotes y Puntas Guaneras) Peru.

JIM CLARE / Turkey vulture (Cathartes aura) flying over Guanay cormorant (Phalacrocorax bougainvilliiorum) colony, Punta San Juan Reserve, (Reserva Nacional de Islas, Islotes y Puntas Guaneras) Peru.

JIM CLARE / Turkey vulture (Cathartes aura) feeding on dead juvenile Humboldt penguin. Punta San Juan Reserve, (Reserva Nacional de Islas, Islotes y Puntas Guaneras) Peru.

JIM CLARE / Turkey vulture (Cathartes aura) feeding on dead juvenile humboldt penguin. Punta San Juan Reserve, (Reserva Nacional de Islas, Islotes y Puntas Guaneras) Peru.

JIM CLARE / Turkey vulture (Cathartes aura) feeding on dead humboldt penguin. Punta San Juan Reserve, (Reserva Nacional de Islas, Islotes y Puntas Guaneras) Peru.

JIM CLARE / Turkey vulture (Cathartes aura) flying .Punta San Juan Reserve, (Reserva Nacional de Islas, Islotes y Puntas Guaneras) Peru.

John Chan / Turkey vulture (Cathartes aura) preening, perched in a tree, Southern California, USA.