Rüppell's Vulture is a large vulture native to the Sahel region of central Africa. It is considered to be the world's highest flying bird,
with confirmed evidence of a collision with an aircraft at an altitude of 37,000 feet (7.01 miles) in the skies of West Africa.
Adults are close to three feet in length with a wingspan of around 8.5 feet and a weight of 15 to 20 pounds.

They roost on inaccessible rock ledges if these are available or in trees, usually Acacia. Much of their day is spent soaring in the
air on thermal currents and using their keen eyesight to spot long forgotten carcasses. They often stay in the air for six to
seven hours a day. They hone in on a carcass in flocks, and with all the tasty flesh gone these
scavengers will eat what is left over, using their powerful hooked beaks to tear
skin and break bones with ease.

Rather than being predators, they are in fact dedicated scavengers performing the vital function of removing (recycling) rotting
carcasses. In fact, they can eat rotting flesh containing anthrax, botulism, and cholera bacteria, which are destroyed
in the stomach.

Many thanks to Tom Schneider, Curator of Birds at the Detroit Zoo, for confirming the identification of this Rüppell's Vulture.