New Vulture Pavilion!

[@animalwondersmontana]

The first 1,000 people to use this link will get a 1 month free trial of Skillshare: skl.sh/animalwondersmontana02221

[@KaaSerpent]

I hope you have more coming from Gwen. She's fascinating. Vultures are definitely a bird we don't learn a lot about because of the negative publicity. :)

[@animalwondersmontana]

Oh, sure! There's so many interesting things vultures do!

[@NinaDmytraczenko]

Absolutely! I'm very curious to see how the enclosure will be in spring and summer :)

[@hunterkat]

My favorite thing is that if you make a circle with your fingers, they’ll stick their beak through it automatically. It’s not a trained behavior, it’s a natural one for them to check out “holes”. Vultures are really cool birds

[@Danika_Nadzan]

I agree...I just love vultures and wish more people understood what amazing and valuable creatures they are! Gwen's new enclosure is fantastic, and it really shows how attentive you are to the needs of all your animal ambassadors! Gwen certainly looks happy and comfortable in there, and I love how you appreciate her unique personality. Thanks for all you do!🥰🥰

[@cherylkinkaid6801]

She's fantastic

[@jenniferhummel7496]

I LOVE vultures. They're such cool creatures. We have a pair that live in an abandoned barn near me and I love to watch them sit with their wings spread out catching the morning sun. They look like some kinda prehistoric feathered pterodactyl or something!

[@benjaccard194]

She looks so happy :)

[@pencilpauli9442]

You may be moulting Gwendolen, but you still look beautiful! ❤ I love how you built the pavilion around natural substrate and the tree!

[@Beryllahawk]

This was a great video! And I am reminded just how BIG a vulture is - my local zoo has a rescued buzzard, but Beauford is not anything like Gwen's size, haha. With her molting, what do you do about the shed feathers? Is it fine for them to just hang around in the pavilion?

[@sankimalu]

That dog is sleeping so peacefully! Such a beautiful sight! Gwen must tell such lovely stories…

[@susanne5803]

Danke!

[@AABB-bm9kk]

What a cute vulture 😀❤️✌️… And That dog looks pretty relaxed 😄✌️…

[@maryberry6067]

Love Turkey vultures. Gwendolyn is beautiful.

[@emilymcglynn]

Honestly contemplating designing a house like gwen's house. Love the little heated room, living tree, sunlight. Lux!

[@HercadosP]

For a moment I thought it would be really cold, but after seeing all the heating, I bet she will stay warmer than me, good job!

[@IrisGlowingBlue]

Seconded! I'm glad y'all put so much thought & care into warming her old bird-lady bones ♡

[@medea27]

Oh wow, that enclosure looks _amazing!_ Congrats AWM crew and thank you donors & sponsors for helping gorgeous Gwen get such a fabulous home, as she rightly deserves! (the shot of Gwen sunning herself in the doorway @ 1:04 is adorable though!) The living tree is a brilliant touch... can't wait to see what it looks like in summer 😀 🦅

[@I_am_Lauren]

That's a beautiful and well thought out space! I hope Gwen enjoys it.

[@NinaDmytraczenko]

In a next video about Gwen could you talk more about vulture's social structure? I've never figured out if they're solitary or a group species. Most bird of prey are solitary, but vultures usually feed and fly in wind currents in groups... Does Gwen live fine on her own? Would she appreciate a bird companion?

[@maromania7]

Just in case she doesn't get a chance, it depends on the vulture! Many vultures do feed in groups, but with a 6 foot wingspan Turkey Vultures like Gwen usually hunt alone. They're big enough to just shove most of thier competition away, so they don't need the safety. They do flock together at night and for migration though, and are pretty social! However, for about a 1/3 of the year it's just them and a mate. I'm sure Jesse's on the lookout if she needs companionship, but in the wild from march to june she would mostly just be socializing sporadically with her mate, I'm sure the Animal Wonders team is making she gets adequate socialization. And honestly...might be a bit late to find a companion she'd actually click with. The older they are the harder it can be to find a bond, and she is VERY old for a turkey vulture, even in captivity they typically cap out around 30. She's 29. But that's part of what's so amazing about animal wonders, they go all out to help the animals, even ones in their twilight years.

[@billy-go9kx]

@@maromania7 I will trust you on the lifespan of vultures instead of googling it. The question instantly popped into my mind when she said 29 yrs old. They are being very respectful to the old lady Gwen.

[@pavarottiaardvark3431]

It'd be really cool to see it again once plants grow in and Gwen moves/tramples/pecks things into the desired positions.

[@leelarson1952]

Nice crib, Gwen! Kudos to your architects, construction crew, and sponsors. Another Animal Wonders Montana success story, all around. Thanks for sharing this video, Jessi. I always have a better day, when there's new content on this channel. Or even when I look back at old content, for that matter. I'm with everyone else who wants to see more infotainment about Gwen and turkey vultures.

[@LaughingGenius]

What a beautiful bird, and I love the beauty of her new enclosure. I'd love to build something similar for my cats someday.

[@synni3379]

Gosh I love turkey vultures.

[@BlackCat_2]

Vultures are awesome. I see them in the wild daily where I live. Mostly flying, soaring high in the sky but sometimes closer. Heidi

[@susanne5803]

I can see horizontally through her nose (?) at 04:03. - Thank you very much for sharing these news!🤗

[@rebeccajesse4604]

wow! I was lucky enough to see a wild turkey vulture when walking my dog in missoula Mt! I rode that high for a week straight! such amazing animals!

[@MiCasitaQuackity]

Always enjoy these videos! They are amazing and beautiful

[@AniFam]

Wonderful~👍 Thank you for sharing this video~🤗

[@toxicara]

Such a beautiful bird, thank you team and donors who help these wonderful animals 😘

[@erin7821]

You deserve your new home Gwen! Thanks so much for all you do for the animals. You make their life better🥰

[@alioncosmic]

Aw, Gwen's the same age as me!

[@samgiles3515]

great stuff! didnt know they had a hole straight through in their nostrils!! how do you 'know' that shes that old tho?

[@animalwondersmontana]

She was taken into a rehabilitation center in 1993 with multiple breaks in both wings, possibly a car strike. And we think she was a young bird at the time, maybe it was her first year figuring the world out. So, 29 is a guess, but she could be older than that.

[@ChrisWEarly]

Wonderful! This is the kind of enclosure I want to have for my sugar gliders! One day.

[@AlthenaLuna]

With animals like Gwen, who've come from other facilities, how much do those other facilities keep tabs on how they're doing? I'd expect it varies widely, and those that do taper off over time as the animals settle in with you, but I'm curious what that communication and relationship is like. It'd be surprising if any facilities (that weren't...concerning in some way) wouldn't at least check in to make sure that the new home is working out.

[@livinginthenow]

FYI - Skill Share no longer offers a monthly subscription. Once your free trial is over, you will AUTOMATICALLY be billed $167.88 for a yearly subscription. True, this is only $13.99 a month, which isn't much. But a lot of people cannot afford to shell out $167.88 ALL AT ONCE. If you can afford that, great. But if you can't, you should rethink the wisdom of taking the free trial.

[@jmembang2467]

Gwen! I've been a fan since birds!! my only concern is, will the lacey act amendment be addressed?

[@tessat338]

Many people don't understand how vital sunlight is for birds to maintain their health. They can literally waste away and die from the lack of full-spectrum sunlight.

[@ragnkja]

Birds get vitamin D3 deficiency unless they’re exposed to UV light, just like humans unless we get enough of it from our diets or take supplements.

[@AhstTraotee]

We love Gwendolyn! Will there be a sponsor package for her in the future?

[@THEsigma_koda]

How do you hold a dog? I hold mine like a baby and I'm concerned if I'm holding them right

[@jbskorp]

I love vultures. 🖤❤️ฅ^•ﻌ•^ฅ

[@bnthern]

i noted an open nares - is this normal for for vultures?

[@kolorsoftherainbow4295]

For New World vultures (Cathartidae), yes! They have a perforate nasal passage, so their nares/nostrils aren’t separated by a septum. Species in the Cathartes genus, such as Turkey and both Yellow-headed vultures, have relatively large nares compared to other New World vultures, which is thought to be connected to their having an advanced sense of smell (whereas other New World vultures don’t). Old World vultures (Accipitridae), on the other hand, do have a septum separating their nares. :)

[@NinaDmytraczenko]

Welp, I'm also about to be 29, but Gwen is definitely looking better than me!

[@animalwondersmontana]

You're both gorgeous!!

[@ShadeSlayer1911]

Same.

[@randy-9842]

Have you ever considered installing Sky Lights for your indoor animals that don't get enough of the warming sunlight?

[@animalwondersmontana]

That's a decent idea! However, we are in Montana, which regularly sees 4 feet of snow buildup in a normal winter. Sometimes, a single snow storm can bring 4 feet. The snow would cover a skylight for 4-6 months of the year, so they just wouldn't work well where we are.

[@ragnkja]

Skylights in snowy areas tend to require a steeper pitch to the roof in order to let light through in the winter, otherwise the snow buildup just blocks out the light.

[@randy-9842]

@@ragnkja Yep! It's doable. Thanks.

[@ragnkja]

@@randy-9842 Unless Missoula is so snowy that a sufficiently steep roof to let the light through is too steep for a roof.

[@createdom]

She still has her tail. Unlike my chickens when they go through hard molt.

[@Myrtle2911]

Does she have a wonky wing?

[@CyborgNinja7]

🙌

[@sapphirII]

29?! I'm barely older than her!

[@animemusicluver1]

Do you perhaps collect Gwendolyn's feathers?

[@beachboardfan9544]

Woah you can see through her nose! Is that normal?

[@kolorsoftherainbow4295]

For New World vultures, yes! They have a perforate nasal passage, so their nares/nostrils aren’t separated by a septum. :)

[@e.m8805]

An earlier video had it too cold for Gwen when you lost power temporarily. Is there a concern that being outside something like that could happen more?

[@animalwondersmontana]

We purposefully made her warm box extra insulated so that we wouldn't need to bring her inside as often. This winter has been fairly mild so far with temperatures only getting down to -16°F two nights. Gwen was able to come out during the day, stay warm with the direct sunlight, heated perch, heat lamp, and also being able to choose to go into the warm box if she wanted. We'll likely still end to bring her inside for extended subzero stints in the future, but this space does allow her to stay outside much more. Inside is fine, but when she's inside she doesn't get sunshine, so it's better if she can stay outside.

[@AM-qc4qt]

Hi! This was a great video. 😊 Can you check the skillshare link is working though? I was going to sign up for a free month but at least on mobile it gives you only 7 days free. There still less than a 1000 views on this video so I figured maybe the issue is with the link?

[@animalwondersmontana]

Thanks, we'll check into it!

[@animalwondersmontana]

The link has been fixed!!

[@curtism-w6b]

*Unreasonable fear of large birds of prey kick in* Haha ... I'm fine 🙂

[@dhruvscholar440]

Could Gwen flies????????

[@SideWalkAstronomyNetherlands]

So why is the bird not free? Bad wings??

[@juliusroman8616]

She has multiple breaks in her wings.

[@animalwondersmontana]

Yes, she sustained multiple breaks in both wings when she was young. She's been cared for by humans since 1993. In some shots you can see her spreading her wings to bask in the sun, that's as wide as she can open them. She has about 3/4 range on her right wing and 1/4 range on her left wing.

[@A_J_H]

So cool I love every animal I have a dog named blue I want to be a wild life artist when I grow up please check my Channel out and see the ones of blue