Identification

The Cinereous Vulture is a very large vulture with relatively uniform dark coloration.

The Cinereous Vulture is very large (total length 102‒112 cm; wingspan 250‒295 cm; mass: 7.0‒12.5 kg); see Measurements. It has a large head and bill, a relatively short neck and short wedge-shaped tail, plus very long, massive, and broad wings. The species’ plumage is generally relatively uniform dark brown or blackish, except the head in adults which is paler (1 Glutz von Blotzheim, N., K. M. Bauer, and E. Bezzel (1971). Handbuch der Vögel Mitteleuropas. Band 4. Falconiformes. Akademische Verlagsgesellschaft, Frankfurt am Main, Germany. Close , 2 Cramp, S., and K. E. L. Simmons, Editors (1980). The Birds of the Western Palearctic. Volume 2. Hawks to Bustards. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close , 3 Forsman, D. (2016). Flight Identification of Raptors of Europe, North Africa and the Middle East. Bloomsbury, London, UK. Close ).

The Cinereous Vulture is similar to a few other large birds of prey that share at least parts of the same range, but is distinguished by a combination of even larger size, generally dark coloration, a short tail, and a large head.

Throughout its range—Europe, Asia, North Africa, and the Middle East—the Cinereous Vulture is generally the largest raptor species. Nevertheless, it can be confused with other very large birds of prey, such as the immature White-tailed Eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla) and adults of the Greater Spotted Eagle (Clanga clanga) and the Steppe Eagle (Aquila nipalensis), due to their also having generally uniformly dark coloration. However, the Cinereous Vulture has longer and broader wings, a shorter tail, and a less protruding head than in either of these species (3 Forsman, D. (2016). Flight Identification of Raptors of Europe, North Africa and the Middle East. Bloomsbury, London, UK. Close ).

In North Africa and the Middle East, an additional potential confusion risk is represented by the immature Lappet-faced Vulture (Torgos tracheliotos), but the Cinereous Vulture is uniformly dark over the lower parts of the body and wings, whereas the Lappet-faced Vulture has some paler feathers on the body and larger wing-coverts (4 Brown, L. H., E. K. Urban, and K. Newman (1982). The Birds of Africa. Volume 1. Academic Press, London, UK. Close , 3 Forsman, D. (2016). Flight Identification of Raptors of Europe, North Africa and the Middle East. Bloomsbury, London, UK. Close ). As an example of probable confusion between these two species, Rothschild and Wollaston (5 Rothschild, N. C., and F. R. Wollaston (1902). On a collection of birds from Shendi, Sudan. Ibis (8)2:1–33. Close ) reported that the Cinereous Vulture was more common around Shendi in Sudan than either the Eurasian Griffon (Gyps fulvus) or Rüppell's Griffon (Gyps rueppelli), but Nikolaus (6 Nikolaus, G. (1987). Distribution Atlas of Sudan’s Birds with Notes on Habitat and Status. Bonner Zoologische Monographien 25. Zoologisches Forschungsinstitut und Museum Alexander Koenig, Bonn, Germany. Close ) postulated that the species involved must have been the Lappet-faced Vulture (nevertheless, the Cinereous Vulture has now been recorded in Sudan; see Distribution).

Is possible to confuse the Eurasian Griffon with the Cinereous Vulture, especially when observed from a distance and with low light conditions. The Cinereous Vulture is larger with broader, more rectangular wings. Coloration of the Cinereous Vulture is darker and more uniform than in the Eurasian Griffon. The Eurasian Griffon has a more curved wing profile than the Cinereous Vulture; the Eurasian Griffon also has a slightly shorter, not clearly wedge-shaped tail, and usually shows one or two light bands in the area of the underwing coverts (7 Salvador, A. (2022). Eurasian Griffon (Gyps fulvus), version 3.0. In Birds of the World (S. M. Billerman and M. A. Bridwell, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. Close ).

The Cinereous Vulture can be mistaken with the Rüppell's Griffon. The Rüppell's Griffon has relatively short wings and are less rectangular than in the Cinereous Vulture. In the Cinereous Vulture, general coloration is dark uniform, whereas in the Rüppell's Griffon greater coverts and primary coverts are black with pale tips without a lateral fringe. The upperwing is scaled with series of black pale-tipped feathers in the Rüppell's Griffon. In the Rüppell's Griffon, underwing pattern is dark with little contrast between flight feathers and coverts, although the underwing coverts do have pale edges, creating a scaled appearance which contrast against the dark centers, and juveniles have a narrow pale bar across the underwing coverts. The juvenile Rüppell's Griffon is mostly streaked and brown (3 Forsman, D. (2016). Flight Identification of Raptors of Europe, North Africa and the Middle East. Bloomsbury, London, UK. Close , 7 Salvador, A. (2022). Eurasian Griffon (Gyps fulvus), version 3.0. In Birds of the World (S. M. Billerman and M. A. Bridwell, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. Close ).

The Cinereous Vulture could be confused with the immature Bearded Vulture (Gypaetus barbatus), which also has dark coloration. The most important difference lies in the tail, which is longer and diamond-shaped in Bearded Vulture (2 Cramp, S., and K. E. L. Simmons, Editors (1980). The Birds of the Western Palearctic. Volume 2. Hawks to Bustards. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close , 3 Forsman, D. (2016). Flight Identification of Raptors of Europe, North Africa and the Middle East. Bloomsbury, London, UK. Close ).

The Cinereous Vulture could be confused with the immature Egyptian Vulture (Neophron percnopterus). They are distinguished by the much smaller size and by the very conspicuous wedge-shaped tail of the Egyptian Vulture (2 Cramp, S., and K. E. L. Simmons, Editors (1980). The Birds of the Western Palearctic. Volume 2. Hawks to Bustards. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ).