It is recognizable by its dark-brown face, long, white neck, and of course ... Its mostly bald head helps the white-backed vulture regulate its body temperature during hot days and cool nights ...

They can strip a carcass clean in minutes. Blood drips from a Rüppell’s vulture’s beak as it pauses mid-meal. The neck and head of Rüppell’s are sparsely feathered, the better to keep gore ...