THE VULTURES HAVE LANDED

I was leaving the house around 11 am this morning, and as I drove around the corner at the end of my street, I stopped abruptly at the side of the roadway. The sight that caught my eye was unusual.

As I had turned that corner, my eyes were drawn to the rooftop of the house there. Perched all over the roof, I saw over a dozen buzzards (better known as turkey vultures). I reached for my camera phone to capture the moment, but as soon as I opened the car door and stepped out, they began to fly away, circling over the house and trees. I knew it had to be an omen of some kind, so I researched it when I got back home.

On the website bored.com/oldsuperstitions it stated that seeing a vulture was an omen of death. I then worried about the people living in that house.

Another website was about Bridgewater, New Jersey and the invasion of 130 vultures that gathered after Hurricane Sandy. The USDA wildlife services said that vultures gather to roost in trees in the fall and winter. The birds like pine and evergreen trees because of protection from the elements. If their habitat was disturbed or destroyed, they seek out a new roosting place near where they can feast on dead creatures.

The third website described a turkey vulture (or turkey buzzard, or just buzzard) as a scavenger, not a killer. They fly low and have a keen sense of sight and smell. The birds nest in small groups and are protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty of 1918. Turkey vultures can be found in grassland areas and is most commonly found in relatively open areas which provide nearby woods for nesting and it generally avoids heavily forested areas.

This information seems to fit...I live by an open grassy area, a cemetery, and a nearby wooded area. I wonder what could be in the cemetery that would attract them - they normally eat carrion and are attracted to the smell of dead animals. I will keep my eyes open to see if they return this week, whether to perch on another rooftop or in the trees.