This turkey vulture is sunning with the sun on his back on our dock in Charleston SC in Dec 2024. Adult turkey vultures wingspan is about 6 feet. This position is referred to as the horaltic position.

Outstretched feathers can be for thermoregulating (warming up or cooling down), drying feathers or for killing bacteria or parasites.

Turkey Vultures have a light grey to whitish underside to the undersides of their flight feathers all the way across. Adults have bare red heads.

They eat carrion (dead things) and are great for the environment as a clean up crew. They get a bad wrap but they are beautiful, helpful, clever, and also goofy.