While often associated with death and decay, vultures provide one of the most crucial tasks in the animal kingdom to Native Americans, they were known as peace birds and were highly revered for their natural recycling abilities.

Aside from serving as nature's cleanup crew, vultures possess a remarkable set of characteristics that make them truly unique creatures.

From their specialized adaptations to their fascinating behaviors, vultures stand out in the avian community, even though they are often overshadowed by their glamorous counterparts.

Still, these animals face several ecological threats and require urgent need for conservation efforts in order to protect them.

In South Carolina, one organization is taking these essential and misunderstood birds under their wing to secure their future in the wild.

Vultures belong to the Raptor family, a term used to describe all birds of prey.

Raptors trace their ancestry back millions of years to an ancient group of theropod dinosaurs, which also gave rise to modern birds.

Today's raptors include eagles, hawks, falcons and owls.

Vultures are further categorized into two groups.

Old world vultures and New world Vultures.

Despite sharing a similar name and ecological niche as scavengers, these groups exhibit distinct differences in their evolutionary history, physical characteristics and geographic distribution.

Old world vultures found in Europe, Africa and Asia belong to the Accipitridae and are more closely related to eagles and hawks.

They have feathered heads, powerful beaks and strong eyesight.

In contrast, New world vultures are found in the Americas.

Belong to the Cathartidae family and have fatherless heads in South Carolina, there are two species of vultures commonly found the black vulture and the turkey vulture.

The turkey vulture and the black vulture have some fascinating behaviors.

Both animals prioritize gliding as compared to traditional flying in order to sniff out their prey.

As social animals, when vultures soar in formation together, they are given the term kettle.

Often held as the heroes of the environment, the vultures most unique quality is their ability to eat rotten or decaying meat.

This is possible due to their highly acidic stomachs and powerful digestive enzymes.

with a pH just over zero, a vulture's stomach acid is stronger than battery acid and 100 times stronger than a human's.

This allows them to consume harmful bacteria such as salmonella, anthrax and botulinum toxin, preventing the spread of diseases that would otherwise contaminate the environment and harm other animals, including people.

Vultures also serve as indicators of a healthy ecosystem as they rely on a steady supply of carrion.

Any decline in vulture populations can signify larger ecological imbalances or issues such as pollution, habitat loss, or the presence of harmful chemicals By monitoring vulture populations, scientists can gain insights into the overall well-being of ecosystems and take necessary conservation actions.

Vultures face various ecological threats that pose significant challenges to their populations.

Most of these threats are anthropogenic, meaning that they're caused directly or indirectly by humans.

One of the major threats is habitat loss and degradation, destruction of natural habitats due to deforestation, Urbanization or agricultural expansion reduces the availability of suitable foraging areas and nesting sites for vultures.

Additionally, this contributes to the loss of large mammal populations, which are an important food source for vultures.

Now, many vultures attain their primary food source of carrion close to roads where they can be struck by vehicles.

Another critical threat is poisoning.

Vultures are highly susceptible to consuming, poisoned carcasses that can be intentionally set out to target nuisance wildlife or unintentionally through lead or other harmful chemicals people use.

Ingesting toxic substances like lead ammunition or pesticides used in livestock carcasses can result in fatal consequences for vultures.

The cumulative effect of these threats has led to declining vulture populations globally, highlighting the urgent need for conservation efforts to protect and preserve these vital scavengers.

For 30 years, the Avian Conservation Center and Center for Birds of Prey has been dedicated to the rescue, education, rehabilitation and conservation of birds of prey and other avian species.

Historically, the center was founded in 1991 as the Charleston Raptor Center.

But over the years, as the center experienced growth and expansion, they underwent a name change to better encompass their mission.

The organization now operates under three distinct divisions.

The Center for Birds of Prey, the Avian Medical Center and the South Carolina oil spill treatment facility.

The Center for Birds of Prey, home to 120 bird residents, offers engaging educational programs, including a captivating flight demonstration.

This provides visitors with an up close look at the natural flying and hunting techniques of hawks, falcons, owls, eagles, kites and vultures showcasing their remarkable evolutionary adaptations.

The avian medical clinic plays a crucial role in the rehabilitation and care of avian patients, handling an average of 800 to 1000 bird cases annually.

They receive notifications about injured birds through their dedicated, injured bird line, which serves as the initial point of contact for reporting and providing assistance to sick and injured birds like this black vulture here.

Over 120 trained volunteers from across South Carolina actively participate in responding to these calls, safely catching and transporting the injured birds to the clinic.

When a patient first arrives, it undergoes an evaluation of its overall health and is checked for sustained injuries to determine whether any necessary medical treatments are surgeries are needed.

In this case, the vultures lethargy gives clinic technicians a hint as to what is wrong.

An X-ray confirms their suspicions, revealing a bullet that was likely ingested by the bird.

Lead poisoning and gunshot wounds aren't a rare phenomenon here, and they are often fatal.

A sample of the birds blood is further tested for lead using high tech medical equipment.

A hemoglobin test is also administered to check the animal's red blood cells.

A healthy bird on average will have a hemoglobin percentage of 40%.

This vulture has a percentage of just four.

Lead poisoning can be so high in patients that sometimes the medical equipment will display errors.

While slightly more expensive, there are alternatives to ammunition that can prevent scenes like this.

While it's heartbreaking that not all birds can be saved, the clinic's experienced staff must make the difficult decision to euthanize those with severe injuries or illnesses.

For the fortunate ones, the clinic provides necessary medical treatments, surgeries and close observation.

Once the birds have made a full recovery, they are released back into the wild, giving them a second chance at life.

The combined efforts of the clinic's dedicated team and the compassionate volunteers ensure that injured birds receive the best possible care and support for their rehabilitation journey back into the wild.