Vultures live in a wide range of habitats across multiple continents. New World vultures, such as the turkey vulture, are found throughout the Americas from southern Canada to the southern tip of South America, inhabiting open and semi-open areas including forests, shrublands, deserts, pastures, and agricultural lands. Old World vultures live across Africa, Europe, and Asia, often in mountainous and open areas such as rocky coasts, grasslands, savannahs, and deserts. More specifically:
- Turkey vultures (New World vultures) inhabit much of North and South America, preferring open country, light woodlands, grasslands, deserts, and coastal areas.
- In Europe, vultures live mainly in mountainous regions such as the Pyrenees, Alps, and other southern European ranges, with species like the griffon vulture, bearded vulture, and cinereous vulture present in these habitats.
- African vultures like the white-backed and Rüppell’s vultures inhabit sub-Saharan African savannahs, grasslands, and arid regions, often roosting in trees or rocky areas.
- Old World vultures are present in varying habitats across Africa, Europe, and Asia, adapting to grasslands, deserts, open woodlands, and mountainous regions.
In summary, vultures are found on almost every continent except Antarctica and Australia, living mainly in open or semi-open habitats that facilitate soaring flight and scavenging. They adapt to a variety of environments including forests, deserts, savannahs, mountains, and agricultural landscapes depending on the species and region.
