Bearded vulture in Peak District
A RARE bearded vulture spotted in Alderney has continued to attract the attention of birdwatchers as it journeys around Britain and Europe.
It was the first to be recorded flying over the Channel Islands, first being spotted on 20 May by Neil Harvey, one of the Alderney Bird Observatory board members. The vulture is about two years old with a 10ft wingspan.
It is believed to have come from the Alps, where they are being reintroduced.
The bird had been spotted in Le Havre before being observed in the islands, with subsequent sightings in Holland and Belgium.
It arrived in the Peak District at the weekend, where about 200 people gathered to watch.
‘Bearded vultures are fascinating mountain birds, driven to extinction in the Alps and very rare in the Pyrenees. They mainly eat bones (for the marrow inside), those left from carcasses where the meat has already been eaten by foxes, eagles or other vulture species like the griffon vulture,’ the Derbyshire Wildlife Trust said.
‘They drop the bones onto rocks to break them open and then eat them.’
The bird is in the Upper Derwent Valley, Derbyshire.
Photos show the tail has suffered considerable damage since its appearance in Alderney.
There are only 600 pairs in Europe.
