A Kettle Of Vultures: The phone rang. I answered. It was my neighbor across the street saying 'quick! come outside and look up!' To see six or eight or even a dozen Turkey Vultures...

Cany143 Loc: SE Utah

The phone rang. I answered. It was my neighbor across the street saying 'quick! come outside and look up!'

To see six or eight or even a dozen Turkey Vultures soaring somewhere close by is nothing new; it's actually rather common. But to see this many Vultures was quite remarkable. So remarkable, in fact, that though yesterday's late evening conditions --a sunless gray sky that threatened rain-- was less than inspiring, the volume of vultures required a camera nevertheless.

Yes, I agree: its not a great image. Its not even a good image. But that aside, it was a great huge kettle of vultures, and it boiled --I questioned-- above something dead below.

The neighbor said it was some sort of sign. Or maybe it was an omen. She would though; she's like that.

(Download)

NMGal Loc: NE NM

WOW! That is a LOT of vultures in one place!

UTMike Loc: South Jordan, UT

An attack on the Spring breakers, hopefully?

wdross Loc: Castle Rock, Colorado

Cany143 wrote:

The phone rang. I answered. It was my neighbor a... (show quote)

Turkey vultures migrate. This type of grouping is actually more common in the fall as far as I know. I know I personally have not noticed much in the spring, but that does not mean it doesn't happen in the spring. It is a lot of fun to see. Most of the time they hardly move a feather while gaining great heights.

Cany143 Loc: SE Utah

UTMike wrote:

An attack on the Spring breakers, hopefully?

Maybe so, Mike. Though probably less an attack than simply being 'on the ready.' The main body of the somewhat distant carrion eaters were more or less centered over what would've been roughly the Main St/Center St intersection. Which would roughly coincide with where the main body of Spring breakers would've been that time of day, flapping in and out of the shops and eateries or doing the stupidest things in their cars. Coincidence? I think not....

Cany143 Loc: SE Utah

NMGal wrote:

WOW! That is a LOT of vultures in one place!

Actually, there were more. Before going back to get the camera, even more of them were in a fairly tight cluster. Shooting the shots I did shoot required a bit of a trade-off. Too far off to get any detail, and too dispersed to use a long lens.

photophile Loc: Lakewood, Ohio, USA

Cany143 wrote:

The phone rang. I answered. It was my neighbor a... (show quote)

Retired CPO Loc: Travel full time in an RV

They ride thermals to save energy while gaining altitude. If they are lucky, they can sail from thermal to thermal along their migration route with barely a wing beat to be seen! Or maybe there is a really big dead something, mastodon maybe, in the middle of town, maybe!

wdross Loc: Castle Rock, Colorado

Retired CPO wrote:

They ride thermals to save energy while gaining altitude. If they are lucky, they can sail from thermal to thermal along their migration route with barely a wing beat to be seen! Or maybe there is a really big dead something, mastodon maybe, in the middle of town, maybe!

J-SPEIGHT Loc: Akron, Ohio

Cany143 wrote:

The phone rang. I answered. It was my neighbor a... (show quote)

That is odd. Never seen that many at one time

slcarn Loc: Draper, Utah USA

Cany,

I just saw this on the internet about Turkey Vulture gatherings:

"A group of roosting turkey vultures is called a convention." In Salina, Kansas they complain about cars being turned white overnight because of large conventions in their trees.

So, keep them in the air, so you don't have to clean your jeep from a local convention.

Steve

Umnak Loc: Mount Vernon, Wa.

Cany143 wrote:

The phone rang. I answered. It was my neighbor a... (show quote)

Spring is in the air!!! Maybe they can chase away all those spring breakers with a deluge of waste?! Ahh wishful thinking for your town to get back to "normal" if there is such a thing anymore, Jim!!
Rob

Cany143 Loc: SE Utah

slcarn wrote:

Cany,

I just saw this on the internet about Turkey Vulture gatherings:

"A group of roosting turkey vultures is called a convention." In Salina, Kansas they complain about cars being turned white overnight because of large conventions in their trees.

So, keep them in the air, so you don't have to clean your jeep from a local convention.

Steve

I confess, Steve, that I looked up 'vulture groupings' on the Google machine, too, 'cuz I didn't know the right word for what a gathering of this kind would be. Knew it wouldn't be a 'pod' or a 'gaggle' or even a 'murder' since those were already taken and was pleasantly surprised when I read that a bunch of vultures in flight is a 'kettle'. Saw the 'convention'* word for roosting vultures first, too, and, well, that leads to my * and a suggestion I've got about that.

*Been to some conventions, and they were usually fine. Been to some symposiums, on the other hand, and most of them were pretty squawky and they produced a lot more 'white' than anybody'd ever want. Consequently, I'd like to suggest that the term for a gang of roosting vultures be changed from 'convention' to 'symposium'. Any idea about who or where or how I could make this suggestion into an actual change?????

(And since there isn't a tree over my Jeep I wasn't too worried.)

slcarn Loc: Draper, Utah USA

I second the move to change “convention” to “symposium.” Now it can be put up for a vote (simple majority).

If we just start calling it a symposium it will catch on and may be faster than a vote!

diclam Loc: Red Lake Falls, MN

That's a lot of Vultures! When I see vultures overhead, I just hope that they are not eyeballing me!