This is about as close to a turkey vulture as I ever wish to be. I had been driving along a country road in spring and spotted this fellow as he was perched on the beam sticking out of the top of an abandoned barn. I really wasn't sure what kind of bird he was until I got closer and had a better look at that "face only a mother could love."

He tolerated my being there for a few minutes and was probably amused as I stumbled over the old farm rubble trying to get close enough for a picture and I don't for one minute believe he was more afraid of me than I was of him--not with that beak! Quite honestly though, I'm not sure what put me into a bigger state of palpitation: his predatory appearance or whether I'd got a reasonably clear shot of His Nibs. :-D

It was a grey and damp day so the sky was as white as paper which is why he's a Textured Turkey.