Epsilon Archive for Student Projects

Abstract

Vultures provide valuable ecosystem services by quickly finding and feeding on carcasses, and thereby reduce the risk of disease transmission. Black vultures (Coragyps atratus) are opportunistic scavengers feeding on carrion and garbage along with a variety of edible waste including afterbirth. This has led to an increase in numbers of vultures present at calving areas throughout the species range. In a study of Nykvist (2006), did a large number of vultures affect the suckling frequency of the calf. The author suggested that this was mainly due to the cow perceiving the vultures as threats and thus spending more time on chasing them away or looking at them instead of taking care of the calf.
The aim of this study is to find out if weather and time of day affects the number of vultures and the frequency of suckling by the calves. This study uses the data collected in Nykvist et al. (2006) and combines it with weather data from a farm Sertãozinho, Brazil. The study found no clear correlation between the number of vultures and weather, time of day or temperature. The study did however find clear effects of the time of day and temperature on suckling frequency. The calves were suckling for longer periods of time when born during the afternoon or during the warmest days.
Although the number of vultures present at the calving site affected the nursing of the calf it is important to also consider the effects of temperature, time of day and weather. Further research is necessary to find out why and when vultures visit the farms in order to decrease wildlife conflicts.