Caring for a Baby Black Vulture

Patient #27218, a Black Vulture hatchling, was transferred from another facility in South Carolina after an individual initially attempted to care for the egg on their own. While well-intentioned, caring for young raptors requires specialized knowledge to ensure proper development and survival in the wild. Thankfully, the hatchling was eventually brought to a wildlife facility and then to Carolina Raptor Center, where our Raptor Hospital team has been able to provide specialized care and support necessary for their growth.

Vulture Growth and Development

Vultures are incredibly smart, with the learning capacity of a 4-year-old human! Their brainpower makes them complex to care for, especially when they’re young. Just like human toddlers, vultures can learn by watching. And while humans are good at many things, we’re not ideal role models for raptors.

Early exposure to people can teach birds behaviors that make it difficult for them to survive on their own. Because of this, trained hospital staff take precautions by wearing camouflage and using puppets to simulate a parent during feeding. However, despite these measures, young birds can still begin to associate humans with food through subtle cues such as voices or even footsteps!

Raptor Foster Parents

Whenever possible, the hospital team prioritizes re-nesting young birds to reduce human interaction and prevent the development of unnatural behaviors. However, this isn’t always an option as sometimes the original nest is destroyed, or an active nest cannot be found. In these cases, the team turns to a reliable alternative: Carolina Raptor Center’s foster parents!

Adult vultures can play an essential role in raising young birds, often simply through their company. For Patient #27218, we introduced them gradually to a pair of experienced Black Vulture fosters. Starting with visual exposure in a kennel inside the adult enclosure, our team carefully monitored their interactions until full contact was safe. We are hopeful for the eventual release of this young vulture as they are now thriving with guidance from their own kind.

Celebrate Vultures with Us!

Come celebrate nature’s clean-up crew at Carolina Raptor Center on Saturday, September 6th for International Vulture Awareness Day.  Learn how vultures play a vital role in keeping ecosystems clean and healthy, and meet some of our amazing resident raptors up close!

Bonus: if you’re bald, your admission is free!