The white-headed vulture (Trigonoceps occipitalis), probably the least well-known vulture species in Africa, has a pink beak and a white crest, and the featherless areas on its head are pale. It has dark brown upper parts and black tail feathers. This bird has a uniquely triangular head, which is pale yellowish and bare except for a cap of white down. White-headed Vultures are probably the most solitary of vultures, nesting at the very top of trees. Although often the first vultures to arrive at a carcass, they are not messy feeders. They cannot compete with the larger vultures and often resort to pirating chunks of meat. They sometimes also catch their own prey of small mammals and birds.
