Uploaded October 2020 | Updated September 2026, 3 days ago
Turkey Vultures spend much of their day gliding and soaring with their wings out in a dihedral position scavenging for carrion.
This requires each of their wing feathers to be aligned in the most optimum position relative to its adjacent feathers and the birds body shape.
In order to achieve this alignment as well as dirt, dust and parasite removal and feather-oiling.
Turkey vultures typically spend two to three hours a day preening, mostly nibbling at the base of feathers, but also running their bills along the shaft of individual feathers from the base to the tip.
Typically in the morning they preen at their roost or in a communal post-roosting area on perches exposed to the sun before heading out to forage. Shortly before sunset they do the same in reverse, landing in an exposed pre-roosting perch site within half a mile of their roost site and engage in maintenance activities before going to bed on their roost sites the the evening.
Turkey Vultures spend much of their day gliding and soaring with their wings out in a dihedral position scavenging for carrion.
This requires each of their wing feathers to be aligned in the most optimum position relative to its adjacent feathers and the birds body shape.
In order to achieve this alignment as well as dirt, dust and parasite removal and feather-oiling.
Turkey vultures typically spend two to three hours a day preening, mostly nibbling at the base of feathers, but also running their bills along the shaft of individual feathers from the base to the tip.
Typically in the morning they preen at their roost or in a communal post-roosting area on perches exposed to the sun before heading out to forage. Shortly before sunset they do the same in reverse, landing in an exposed pre-roosting perch site within half a mile of their roost site and engage in maintenance activities before going to bed on their roost sites the the evening.
