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back to article Giant vulture menaces Scottish skies

Pilots over Scotland have been warned to keep a sharp eye out for a Rueppell's Griffon Vulture which is currently awol from a Cumbernauld bird of prey centre and poses "a genuine threat to airplanes". The missing beast - a seven-year-old female called Gandalf - was flying at World of Wings when she was transported into the …

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  1. MattW

    'Other pressures'

    Is that 'other pressures' like getting T-boned by passing Airbuses?

    1 0
  2. SlackerUK
    Black Helicopters

    "ongoing loss of habitat and other pressures"....

    ... the other pressures being air traffic control I presume?

    0 0
  3. Fluffykins Silver badge
    Paris Hilton

    "Beak designed to tear flesh apart"

    'nuff said.

    0 0
  4. ian 22
    Alert

    Will the RAF dare to challenge it?

    The title lead me to believe that our PARIS had taken to the air.

    Does this creature fancy aluminium? If so, A320s beware!

    0 0
  5. Annihilator

    "Other pressures"

    "There are around 30,000 Rueppell's Griffon Vultures (Gyps rueppelli) in the wild, but their numbers are threatened by "ongoing loss of habitat and other pressures". ®"

    Not planes presumably... But I suppose they'd take each other out.

    0 0
  6. liquidphantom
    Linux

    Can you tell me how to get...

    Members of the public are being told to keep a look out for a large yellow bird asking for directions to a certain street. Any one seeing the offending bird matching this description should not approach as it is considered dangerous and a threat to small children.

    3 0
  7. /dev/null
    Joke

    A danger to "airplanes"?

    Nothing to worry about then. Americans have "airplanes" - we have "aeroplanes" over here. Panic over.

    11 0
  8. thedweeb
    FAIL

    Phew!

    Luckily, there aren't any "airplanes" in the UK. We fly in aeroplanes here.

    13 0
  9. Thomas 4

    Uh-oh

    "And coming live from Scotland we have the re-entry of the Vulture 1, being rapidly pursued by Vulture 2."

    3 0
  10. Alfie
    Black Helicopters

    Fit aboot a cuddly futret?

    I suspect it might have taken a fancy to humans. It's the start of term today, and it could easily take out a P1 kid.

    0 0
  11. Jon Double Nice
    Coat

    In theory...

    if it kept on going up, it would end up on the moon. Have they tried looking there for it?

    1 0
  12. Anonymous Coward
    IT Angle

    Where's the IT angle?

    Where's the IT angle?

    This isn't "Odds & Sods"!

    p.s. Where do I collect my prize?

    0 0
    1. Sarah Bee (Written by Reg staff)
      Reply Icon

      Re: Where's the IT angle?

      Collect *this*.

      8 1
  13. Rogerborg

    Yeah, yeah, 10 feet

    And my 'carcase penetrating beak' is 10 inches, baby, fo' sure.

    Oh gawd, I can hear SyFy signing up the film right now: Mega Vulture versus Engorged Scotchman.

    0 0
    1. Marvin the Martian
      Reply Icon
      Linux

      10.5 feet? Hm.

      A bit unbelievable at 10.5 feet which would put it firmly in world-record territory (while it has indeed the world flying height record). 8.5 feet would sound more believable.

      Not that you'd really care about a foot more or less when it clangs into your cockpit.

      0 0
  14. nichomach
    Grenade

    Someone call Lewis Page...

    Sod Watchkeeper, there's 30,000 of these buggers available - train them, sling a camera under 'em and get them to pull the pins out of the icon'ed hardware and we could save a frickin' FORTUNE on the MoD budget!

    0 0
  15. MinionZero
    Joke

    There, fixed that for you...

    “Surfers over the web have been warned to keep a sharp eye out for an IT The Register Vulture which is currently awol from a Cumbernauld padded cell centre and poses "a genuine threat to corrupt and/or amoral IT companies".” :)

    3 1
  16. steward
    Badgers

    Instant karma

    The vulture was sent by the Gods to show displeasure over the release of the Lockerbie terrorist. Fear for your planes, Scotland!

    0 1
  17. JaitcH
    Joke

    Just as well there's only one loose, could you imagine what damage ...

    a pair of them 'flying united' could do?

    0 1
  18. Daniel Wilkie

    Surely...

    they can find something 10ft across flying around in scotland no?

    0 0
  19. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    poses "a genuine threat to airplanes" in Scottish skies

    What a load of bollocks! Can't imagine too many pilots flying through the Sehal region, actively look out for them.

    Migh aswell be on lookout for a potential meteor strike!

    0 0
  20. K. Adams
    Welcome

    Dirk Gently's Flat

    Of course we know where it went...

    ... It's waiting in Dirk's flat waiting to be turned back into a jet fighter.

    I, for one, welcome our new transmogrified RAF bird-of-prey overlords.

    1 0
  21. smudge
    Paris Hilton

    A very intelligent bird

    Anyone who knows Cumbernauld will sympathise with its desire to get the hell away from the place.

    Paris cos she knows all about monstrous peckers.

    1 0
  22. Anonymous John
    Welcome

    I for one

    Welcome our new raptorial plane-devouring overlord.

    0 0
  23. Steve X
    Unhappy

    Am I the only one

    who read the title and assumed that Google Earth was somehow involved?

    1 0
  24. jake Silver badge

    Horse crap.

    Turkey vultures hang out at PAO, feasting on 'plane-kill (bunnies & smaller birds). I have never heard of a pilot flying into or out of Palo Alto hitting one. And there are often tens of these things hanging about ... with 6 foot wingspans. The chances of commercial aircraft occupying the same airspace as a single bird "somewhere over Scotland" are less than remote, regardless of wingspan.

    0 1
  25. Anonymous Coward
    Stop

    Why?

    I've been waiting for evolutionary biologists to come up with a convincing "just-so-story" about the adaptive significance or advantage of said bird cruising around at altitudes 6K ft higher than Everest.

    (Not doubting anything about credible evolution, only incredible abuses of it. To the point, one of their oft heard lamer assertions is that, if an animal has some capability, it must have evolutionary meaning - or some such nonsense).

    0 0
  26. Francis Offord
    Linux

    Bulls hit

    This exemplifies the danger of importing un-natural beings into the existence of places other than their natural habitat. We saw the same thing with Grey Squirrels, only a few in the 1800s but look at them now. In other words, we fucked up again.

    Those responsible should be told to "duck off".

    0 0
  27. Yorkshirepudding
    Welcome

    could be worse

    could be a jet propelled solar powered ornithopter

    answers on a postcard please....

    0 0
  28. Shambles
    WTF?

    Transsexual Vultures now?

    Article says female, owners website says male. Can these birds really behave like this?

    0 0
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