# Bearded vulture (*Gypaetus barbatus*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/bearded-vulture  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The bearded vulture (Gypaetus barbatus), also called Ossifrage, Lammergeyer or Lammergeier, is a bird of prey in the family Accipitridae and order Accipitriformes. It is a medium-sized bird with an adult body mass of 5.7 kg in representative values, from 4.9 to 6.2 kg across our sources, and a wingspan of 2.6 m. A terrestrial scavenger of rocky habitats, it feeds on bone marrow and is partially migratory, with a geographic range of 8,370,000 km². It is listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List, which is not an IUCN threatened category, and has a lifespan of 40 years.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 4.91 kg – 6.21 kg |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Wingspan | 2.62 m |
| Lifespan | 40 years |
| Diet | Scavenger |
| Main food | bone marrow |
| Habitat | rocky |
| Egg incubation | 55.8 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 1 – 1.5 |
| Age at maturity | 6.97 years |
| Litters or clutches a year | 1 |
| Reproduction | Eggs |
| Lifestyle | Terrestrial |
| Migration | Partial |
| Conservation status | Near Threatened (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Aves
- order: Accipitriformes
- family: Accipitridae
- genus: Gypaetus
- species: *Gypaetus barbatus* (Linnaeus, 1758)

Synonyms: *Gupista barbata*, *Gypaetos alpinus*, *Phene ossifraga*, *Vultur barbatus*, *Vulture barbatus*

## Common questions

### What kind of animal is the bearded vulture?

The bearded vulture is a bird of prey in the family Accipitridae, order Accipitriformes.

### What does the bearded vulture eat?

The bearded vulture is a scavenger whose main food is bone marrow.

### How heavy is the bearded vulture?

An adult Bearded vulture weighs 5.7 kg in representative values, with our sources reporting from 4.9 to 6.2 kg. Its wingspan is 2.6 m.

### Is the bearded vulture endangered?

No, it is listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List, which is not an IUCN threatened category.

### How long does the bearded vulture live?

The bearded vulture has a lifespan of 40 years, and it reaches sexual maturity at 7 years.

### How many eggs does the bearded vulture lay?

The bearded vulture lays 1.5 eggs per clutch in representative values, with one clutch per year. Incubation lasts 56 days.

### What other names does the bearded vulture have?

The bearded vulture is also called Ossifrage, Lammergeyer and Lammergeier.

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), CC0 1.0, E096-269. Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1
- [AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7), CC BY 4.0, v7. Tobias, J.A. et al. (2022) AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds. Ecology Letters 25: 581–597. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13898. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Bearded vulture (Gypaetus barbatus). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/bearded-vulture