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Up to 80% of the Bearded Vulture's diet consists of bones, tendons and ligaments. As no other carrion feeding animal is interested in these parts, Bearded Vultures do not have to compete for this source of food. Bones may seem of little nutritive value at first but contain as much energy as meat. Due to their highly effcient digestive tract Bearded Vultures alone are capable of using these nutritious substances.
The "bonebreaker"
Bearded Vultures are capable of swallowing bones up to the size of sheep's vertebra or chamois leg whole. Larger bones are dropped in flight from a height of 50 - 100 m onto a smooth rock until they break. The fragments can then be eaten.
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