king vulture

noun

a large, black-and-white vulture, Sarcorhamphus papa, of Central and South America, having colorful wattles and wartlike protuberances on its head and neck.

First recorded in 1880–85

Monarch of the feathered tribes of the forest, the king vulture fears no rival throughout his wild domain.

The king vulture makes his nest in the hollow of a tree, where his queen lays two eggs.

The king vulture (Dresden 8a), the dog (Dresden 7a), and the parrot (Dresden 40b) come next in descending importance.

Two species only seem to occur in the writings, the king vulture and the black vulture.

In the Nuttall Codex, the head of the king vulture occurs repeatedly as a glyph for this day.

April 23, 2024inveterate

[in-vet-er-it ]

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