By Piotr Her
“Vultures' behaviour at a carcass remains social, respecting the temporary dominance of the hungriest: the hungriest and most aggressive bird has first choice, eating alone from the carcass. As its hunger is satisfied, it becomes less aggressive and less dominant, and is then replaced by a more aggressive vulture.”
Large birds of prey have always been persecuted and have only found refuge in the most inaccessible parts of mountain ranges, often at very high altitudes. Although protected for the past twenty years or so, they show no inclination to recolonize the lower altitudes and plains. Human activity leaves them only a marginal role in a sanitized countryside dedicated to intensive farming practices.
The Pyrenees are the last refuge for certain species, while offering shelter to birds of prey known in other mountains. It is this wealth of wildlife that the various nature reserves throughout the range -from the national park in the west to eastern reserves- all aim to conserve.
In the 1970s, just before birds of prey were placed under legal protection, the situation was critical. Today, most small and medium bird of prey populations have risen to an acceptable level. The larger birds of prey are more sensitive to disturbances of all kinds. The time taken before reaching sexual maturity, the few young born per couple (often one over a two-year period), the long breeding period (one year) and the numerous failures all serve to slow down reproduction and hinder the renewal of generations.
We should always keep one eye on the sky in the hopes of seeing a fleeting silhouette or even the soaring flight of one of these large birds of prey in their own domain.
Footpaths begin in the foothills, sometimes near rock faces offering shelter to the peregrine falcon. Higher up in the mountains, above the tree line, we enter the izard's territory. This is where you might be lucky enough to spot a royal eagle. Although it would not refuse carrion, the eagle is a hunter by nature.
It is near the mountain tops that you are likely to spot a small vulture not widely known by the general public: the Egyptian vulture. This small migrant carrion-eater has disappeared from numerous mountain regions where it was previously a common sight: Massif Central, southern Alps, Alpilles... Though couples live at some distance from each other, they may meet up on the same animal carcass or rubbish tip. The Egyptian vulture is an opportunist, and can eat almost anything, from ostrich eggs in Africa -which it breaks using a stone as a tool- to sheep droppings!
When the snow thaws, the carcasses of animals killed in winter avalanches appear scattered around the mountain tops. This is a godsend for griffon vultures which spot them quickly during their constant flights over the whole range. When a vulture dives down towards a likely meal, all the others -who have been keeping a distant but watchful eye- also converge on the sector, making a noisy gathering to pick the carcass clean, leaving only the hardest bones. Vultures' behaviour at a carcass remains social, respecting the temporary dominance of the hungriest: the hungriest and most aggressive bird has first choice, eating alone from the carcass. As its hunger is satisfied, it becomes less aggressive and less dominant, and is then replaced by a more aggressive vulture.
A trophy sighting for bird enthusiasts, golden eagles are more elusive than vultures as they spend hours or even days motionless on their high perches where they are impossible to spot. However we do see them several times each summer. One family nests in the Valle de Tena with the young birds starting to lose their juvenile markings. There were some great sightings of this group in the area of Col de Sabacos above Panticosa. As very territorial birds the area of the Ordesa National Park would normally only support one pair of golden eagles, however the abundance of wildlife (and therefore food!) in the park allows three breeding pairs to nest there.
While the vultures are feasting, a large bird often soars overhead, noting the spot. There is no hurry, for it will come back later, often much later. This is the bearded vulture, the largest bird of prey in Europe. The remarkable thing about this bird is that it eats bones! While the bearded vulture is capable of swallowing a cow's hoof in one go, there are bones too large to swallow whole. These it grasps in its talons, flying up to several hundred metres before dropping them onto a rocky area where it can retrieve the broken bits and swallow them easily.
You would be very lucky to see all these birds during a single walk, but if you persevere, you may well come across these legendary animals one day in their Pyrenean refuge.
Sources: www.pyrenees-decouverte.com; www.wikipedia.com; www.hikepyrenees.co.uk
