Cannibalism in Eurasian Griffon Vultures Gyps fulvus

Abstract

We describe an observation of Griffon Vultures Gyps fulvus killing and eating a conspecific in Álava, northern Spain. We put this observation in the context of previous reports of cannibalistic behaviour in vultures. The reduction of live-stock carcasses available to scavengers in the wild, a result of the carcass removal policy adopted by EU countries after the bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) outbreak, could have contributed to this behaviour.