Greater Yellow-headed Vulture (Cathartes melambrotus)
Illustration redrawn by AI from a real photograph

Greater Yellow-headed Vulture

Cathartes melambrotus Wetmore, 1964

1.4 kgWeight

The greater yellow-headed vulture (Cathartes melambrotus), also known as the forest vulture, is a species of bird in the New World vulture family Cathartidae.

Busiest months: July–August · Most records: Peru, Ecuador, Brazil

Least Concern

Where and when it's recorded

Busiest months: July–August · Most records: Peru, Ecuador, Brazil

Greater Yellow-headed Vulture has been recorded at 169 of the 8,276 birding hotspots we track, in 9 countries and regions.

Records by month Southern Hemisphere

Where it's recorded most

  1. Sani LodgeEcuador1,306 records
  2. Rio Cristalino – listas históricasBrazil1,131 records
  3. Sacha LodgeEcuador938 records
More places
  1. Los Amigos Biological StationPeru652 records
  2. Napo Wildlife CenterEcuador508 records
  3. Explorer's InnPeru480 records
  4. Manu BiolodgePeru461 records
  5. Reserva Biológica LimoncochaEcuador440 records
  6. Amazonía LodgePeru409 records
  7. Atta Lodge / Iwokrama Canopy WalkwayGuyana377 records

Countries and regions with the most records

PeruEcuadorBrazilGuyanaColombiaSurinameVenezuelaFrench Guiana

eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.

About

The greater yellow-headed vulture (Cathartes melambrotus), also known as the forest vulture, is a species of bird in the New World vulture family Cathartidae. It was considered to be the same species as the lesser yellow-headed vulture until they were split in 1964. It is found in South America in tropical moist lowland forests.

Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia

Questions

How big is the Greater Yellow-headed Vulture?

The Greater Yellow-headed Vulture weighs around 1.4 kg.

Where does the Greater Yellow-headed Vulture live?

Its breeding range: South America: Amazonia. It is most often recorded in Peru, Ecuador and Brazil.

When is the best time to see the Greater Yellow-headed Vulture?

At the hotspots we track, it is recorded most in July and August (Southern Hemisphere).

Is the Greater Yellow-headed Vulture endangered?

The IUCN Red List classifies the Greater Yellow-headed Vulture as Least Concern.

What does the Greater Yellow-headed Vulture eat?

Main food: Carrion.

What family is the Greater Yellow-headed Vulture in?

It belongs to the family New World Vultures (Cathartidae), order Accipitriformes.

At a glance

Weight
1.4 kg
Habitat
Forest
Diet
Carrion
Lifestyle
Active on the ground
Migration
Resident (barely migrates)
Conservation
Least Concern
More measurements
Wing
503 mm
Tail
258 mm
Bill
55 mm
Tarsus
63 mm

Averages from the AVONET dataset; length from field guides where available.

Range

South America: Amazonia

Breeding range, IOC World Bird List 15.2

Classification

Family
New World Vultures Cathartidae
Genus
Cathartes

Other birds in the genus Cathartes

Turkey VultureTurkey VultureCathartes auraLesser Yellow-headed VultureLesser Yellow-headed VultureCathartes burrovianusCalifornia CondorCalifornia CondorGymnogyps californianusKing VultureKing VultureSarcoramphus papaAndean CondorAndean CondorVultur gryphusBlack VultureBlack VultureCoragyps atratus
Greater Yellow-headed Vulture

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Free to use with credit: “Illustration: Bird Album (birdalbum.com)”. Drawn by AI from a reference photo by Lilian Tomazelli. ↗

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