In this quick tutorial you'll learn how to draw a King Vulture in 7 easy steps - great for kids and novice artists.
The images above represent how your finished drawing is going to look and the steps involved.
Below are the individual steps - you can click on each one for a High Resolution printable PDF version.
At the bottom you can read some interesting facts about the King Vulture.
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How to Draw a King Vulture - Step-by-Step Tutorial
Step 1: First, draw the head and beak first. The vulture's beak is hooked slightly, and is a little bigger than most birds' beaks.
Step 2: Draw the eyes, and then detail to the face and above the beak.
Step 3: Draw the body, leaving a space for the tail and wing.
Step 4: Add the tail, which is very large. Add little lines at the bottom for eathers.
Step 5: Draw the tail, which continues the body and is rough at the bottom.
Step 6: Add two legs at the bottom of the vulture.
Step 7: Add detail to the wings and tail to create feathers.
Interesting Facts about the King Vulture
The King vulture (Sarcoramphus papa) is a large species of vulture. Unlike other vultures, king vultures are mostly white with some black tail and wing feathers. They have blue, red, orange and yellow feathers around their head, and bright orange skin that droops over their beak called a waddle.
Did you know?
- They live mostly in tropical forests from southern Mexico to northern Argentina.
- King vultures have long claws they can use to grasp their meals, and thick, strong beaks that they use to shred flesh.
- They possibly got their name from the fact that they scare off smaller vultures from carcasses and make them wait while the king vulture eats its share. However, it was also believed in some Mayan legends that the king vulture was a king who served as a messenger between gods and humans.
- Not much is known about king vultures in the wild, probably because they prefer to live high in canopies of tall trees.
- King vultures are scavengers; they are not known to hunt and only eat the bodies of already dead animals.
Lesson plan note: In Mayan culture, the king vulture is one of the most commonly represented. Discuss why this would be such a popular animal, especially considering how hard it is to observe in the wild.
How to Draw a King Vulture – Step-by-Step Tutorial