The King Vulture or Griffon Pope ( Sarcoramphus papa ) is a species of large vulture Central and South America family Cathartidae . He lives mainly in tropical lowland forests which extend from southern Mexico to northern Argentina . It is the only surviving member of the genus Sarcoramphus , other members of it are known only as fossils.
Its plumage is mainly white with gray and black feathers at the collar it has at the bottom of the neck , wings and tail . His head and neck are featherless , with varying skin colors : yellow, orange , blue, purple and red. It is easily recognizable by its yellow caroncule above the spout . This vulture is a scavenger ; it is often the first to make a dent in the skin of a new carcasse1 and hunting smaller species of vultures around to feed itself . It can live up to 30 years in captivity and has 40 pairs of chromosomes2 .
It is very popular in Maya as well as in local folklore .
uploaded 02 июн, 2014 Copyright by claude ferrara
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animals