“What a lovely child of God it is, soarin’ up there,” said Fr. Hogan in the novel “Children of Hunger.” And he added, “Of course, down on the ground it’s a buzzard. Lots of things in the world seem to be like that.”

Thus, a fictional view of the turkey vulture and the less widespread black vulture. The turkey vulture summers up into Canada and permanently ranges the southern United States. It is a common sight along roadsides and sometimes above cities. These common carrion eaters are natural scavengers, and highly useful ones, but they are a little hard to admire except at a distance. A large bird, often more than 30 inches long and with great wingspread, they don’t need to be fed. Our driving habits and our careless disposal of garbage generally provide plenty of food for them.