Buy Vulturine Guinea fowl for sale

Buy Vulturine Guinea Fowl are lare birds and one of the most unique-looking varieties of guinea fowl — easily identified by their unmistakable bare skinned, blue-gray head and neck with a band of short chestnut brown feathers behind its eyes on the back of its head. The Vulturine’s back and breast is a brilliant blue color with long, white stripes and it has a black patch on the center of its chest. It is spotted on its wings and rear half of body, and has a long, drooping tail. Females are similar to the males, but they are slightly smaller and have smaller tarsal spurs. Chicks will develop light blue underneath at just a few weeks of age. Vulturine Guineas’ voices are sometimes described as sounding like a creaking wagon wheel.

Vulturine Guineas are native to sub-Saharan Africa and in the wild they are known to travel in flocks of 20-50 birds.

Captive-bred Vulturines can become very tame and do very well in an aviary. Males can sometimes be aggressive towards hens, so plan for a large sized aviary with plenty of cover for the hen. They are best kept in pairs, and can be kept with other species as long as the aviary is large enough. Guineas are known to wander in search of food, it is important to keep them confined a minimum for 3-4 weeks before allowing them to free range. They will then associate their new location as home. Even with this confinement they might wander off, if this is a concern keep them continually confined.

Breeding season varies, with some laying in early spring and again in the fall. Hens will breed their first year with a clutch size of 4-8 eggs, and they will lay several clutches if their eggs removed. Vulturine Guinea eggs have an incubation period of 24 days. Hens prefer to lay eggs under thick grasses or shrubs.

Vulturine chicks need plenty of live food like mealworms to get them started. Males will often readily adopts chicks, brooding them at night, showing them food, and protecting them. Green food should be an important part of the diet of both adults and young.

Vulturine Guineas are fairly hardy birds — they tolerate heat well, but require protection from colder weather. Where temperatures reach freezing, they will need a heated and enclosed shelter.

Vulturine Guinea fowl for sale

Acryllium vulturinum

The most exotic and striking of all guinea fowl, this large, uniquely beautiful, and gregarious species closely resembles a vulture in that their slim neck protrudes from a long, glossy blue and white cape, or hackles. Adults are brilliantly colored with a cobalt blue chest, fancy a bare blue face with a black neck, and body plumage is black with a fine spangling of white coloring. Males and females share the same color patterns. Stunning to say the least.

Range: The dry savannas and scrublands of Eastern Africa

Status in the wild: Very common in the wild. These are of least concern by the IUCN.

Status in aviculture: These are very popular and in high demand for private aviculturists. The privately-owned population is currently increasing.

Breeding: Season can vary. They start to breed at one year of age. Clutches are typically 4-8 eggs but you can encourage multiple clutches by removing eggs to the incubator. Eggs take 24 days to hatch. These do very well in an aviary.

Temperament: Males can be aggressive at times so plan to have a large pen with cover for the hen to escape the males.

These birds can suffer frostbite easily. In areas where temperatures fall at or below freezing, a shelter should be provided, warm enough that your birds are above freezing. A thick layer of straw bedding is recommended for them to sleep on, protecting their legs and feet. They should be fed live insects of some type such as mealworms. Other than these requirements they can be raised much like any other game bird. Vulturines can be in a mixed aviary with other species of pheasants and quail.

Buy Vulturine Guinea fowl

Fun Facts

The vulturine guineafowl is often referred to as the “royal guineafowl” because it tends to have the most striking appearance.

They are named for their bald head and neck, which resembles a vulture.

These birds are both monomorphic and monochromatic. This means that both sexes have a very similar form and coloration. In other words, it can be difficult to distinguish the sexes.

Captive hens have produced up to 40 eggs in just one season (3 clutches).

The eggshells of this species are extremely thick and difficult to break. Chicks hatch by “breaking out” instead of chipping away at the shell.

These birds are excellent runners and rarely fly, with exception of reaching nocturnal roosting perches.

The chicks are well-developed when they hatch and can fly within a few days.

These birds roost high in trees at night. Their calls, when disturbed or excited, can be heard over long distances.

Nests may contain eggs from more than one hen and they may share incubation duties.

These birds can be quite aggressive towards one another and have been known to fatally injure their own kind if competition for food or prime roosting areas comes into question. Even the chicks have been known to attack one another.

Males tend to be very aggressive towards the hens most of the time. One effective way to distinguish the sexes is by observing each individual’s body posture. The males tend to carry their heads high and attempt to look as big as possible. Females, on the other hand, tend to adopt a submissive posture.