Date Published: 11/02/2020
ARCHIVED - Black vultures nesting in Murcia for the first time in over a century
ARCHIVED ARTICLE 
The species joins the griffon vulture in the mountains of Lorca and the north-west
An article published in regional newspaper La Verdad on Monday highlights the return to the Region of Murcia of the black vulture, with ornithologists excited by the successful breeding and rearing of a chick for the first time in over 100 years.
The chick hatched last year in the mountains of Sierra del Gigante between Lorca and Caravaca de la Cruz, and as soon as the nest was discovered it was discreetly placed under protection by the Department of the Environment in the regional government. Under observation by telescope, the chick was seen flying from the nest early in September, marking a small but important addition to the local birdlife, which already includes a thriving population of griffon vultures in the north-west of the Region of Murcia.

The mating pair in the Sierra del Gigante is located as far as 180 kilometres from the nearest known population in the Sierra de Andújar, in the province of Jaén, while other groups inhabit Mallorca and parts of the province of Lleida in northern Catalunya. These are not especially long distances for the species, but in general terms adult birds tend to return to the place of their birth later in life, so it may be that Lorca is on the verge of welcoming back the Aegypius monachus species on a permanent basis.
The return of the black vulture is relatively recent, but for a few decades now the griffon vulture has been re-establishing itself in the north-west of Murcia and there are now over 200 mating pairs and 600 birds in the area. This is largely due to more food being available as the numbers of mountain goat and Barbary sheep have grown, and in addition the regional government is gradually permitting cattle farmers to leave carcasses on the ground for a limited period of time.
As for black vultures (or cinereous vultures), they have been present in the area for at least 15 years, but this is the first time that mating is known to have been successful since the early 20th century. In September 2004 a young member of the species was found injured and then treated at the Wildlife Recovery Centre in El Valle before being re-released in Moratalla, and by 2009 other specimens were appearing every autumn and winter all over the Region.
In 2015 and 2016 the number of sightings increased considerably, even during the mating season, and last winter at least five different birds were sighted.
Images: SEO Birdlife
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