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I and the Bird: What is a Vulture?

10,000 Birds

Old World Vultures are nestled within the family Acciptridae along with the hawks and eagles. It’s actually a pretty classic example of convergent evolution, wherein two unrelated families of lifeforms evolve to fill the same niche independently. Turkey Vulture Wing Tagging – Charlotte Wasylik, Prairie Birder.

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Escape to the Sounds

10,000 Birds

This scraggly collection of islands and deep long bays forms the tip of South Island closest to to North Island, but till this point my only experience of the area had been the long passage down Queen Charlotte Sound to reach the ferry terminal of Picton. Lochmara Bay with Queen Charlotte Sound in the background.