← Back to the archive★ Support my pages
DD-427NatureFiled Last updated

Bone Eater

Short answer: The bearded vulture (Gypaetus barbatus) lives in mountains of Europe, Africa and Asia and feeds mainly on bones, which can make up 70 to 90 percent of its diet. Its very acidic stomach digests large bone pieces, and it drops bones too big to swallow from height onto rocks to break them.

The footage shows a bearded vulture carrying and dropping a bone.

VideoWrite-up1 sources
More like this★ Support my pagesCite this file

What should you know about Bone Eater?

Quick facts. Each one stands alone and has a stable ID you can cite.

  1. Mainly bone.

    DD-427-F01 · Write-up · Exhibit A (Diet)

  2. 70 to 90 percent.

    DD-427-F02 · Write-up · Exhibit B (Share)

Video transcript: Bone Eater: Bone Makes up Most of the Bearded Vulture's Diet

Did you know? Bearded vultures have a highly specialized diet, primarily consisting of bones. Up to 90% of their diet is bone material, which they consume to extract the rich nutrients, particularly calcium and marrow. They are equipped with strong stomach acids, capable of digesting bone within about 24 hours. Bearded vultures often pick up large bones and drop them from great heights onto rocky surfaces, a behavior known as bone dropping, to break them into smaller, manageable pieces. NOW YOU KNOW!

Burned-in captions, read frame by frame (see transcript.md) · 23.5s Reel ·

Video coming soonBone Eater · Instagram Reel
Bone Eater: Bone Makes up Most of the Bearded Vulture's Diet Instagram Reel · · 23.5s

The write-up

Bone makes up most of the bearded vulture's diet. It drops big bones onto rocks to smash them.

  1. Exhibit A

    Diet

    Mainly bone.

  2. Exhibit B

    Share

    70 to 90 percent.

  3. Exhibit C

    Acid

    Very acidic stomach.

  4. Exhibit D

    Dropping

    Drops bones on rocks.

  5. Exhibit E

    Range

    Mountains of three continents.

Questions people ask about Bone Eater

What does it mainly eat?

Marrow.

Source: Write-up · Exhibit A (Diet) · Wikipedia: Bearded vulture

How does it break bones?

From height.

Source: Write-up · Exhibit B (Share) · Wikipedia: Bearded vulture

What digests bone?

Acidic.

Source: Write-up · Exhibit C (Acid) · Wikipedia: Bearded vulture

Where does it live?

Cliffs.

Source: Write-up · Exhibit D (Dropping) · Wikipedia: Bearded vulture

Scientific name?

Lammergeier.

Source: Write-up · Exhibit E (Range) · Wikipedia: Bearded vulture

Test Your Knowledge

All quizzes →

5 questions, all from this case file. Answers are revealed instantly.

  1. What does it mainly eat?

    1. Bones
    2. Fruit
    3. Fish
    4. Insects
    Show the answer

    Answer: A. Bones Marrow. Source: Write-up · Exhibit A (Diet) · Wikipedia: Bearded vulture

  2. How does it break bones?

    1. Drops them on rocks
    2. Bites
    3. Freezes them
    4. Buries them
    Show the answer

    Answer: A. Drops them on rocks From height. Source: Write-up · Exhibit B (Share) · Wikipedia: Bearded vulture

  3. What digests bone?

    1. Strong stomach acid
    2. Teeth
    3. Sunlight
    4. Bacteria only
    Show the answer

    Answer: A. Strong stomach acid Acidic. Source: Write-up · Exhibit C (Acid) · Wikipedia: Bearded vulture

  4. Where does it live?

    1. Mountains
    2. Oceans
    3. Swamps
    4. Deserts only
    Show the answer

    Answer: A. Mountains Cliffs. Source: Write-up · Exhibit D (Dropping) · Wikipedia: Bearded vulture

  5. Scientific name?

    1. Gypaetus barbatus
    2. Aquila chrysaetos
    3. Vultur gryphus
    4. Bubo bubo
    Show the answer

    Answer: A. Gypaetus barbatus Lammergeier. Source: Write-up · Exhibit E (Range) · Wikipedia: Bearded vulture

Cite this case file

Easterling, Marcus. "Bone Eater." The Detail Department (DetailEnjoyer), case file DD-427, last updated Dec 15, 2024. https://detailenjoyer.com/case/bone-eater/

Permalink: https://detailenjoyer.com/case/bone-eater/ · Last updated

Markdown version

Cite a single fact by its ID, for example DD-427-F01 → https://detailenjoyer.com/case/bone-eater/#DD-427-F01