[Life is Wild]

For those of you who clicked on the link about wing-spreading, it does a good job conveying some of the newest finds on cormorant and anhinga behavior, but also mentions the turkey vultures also practice wing-spreading. It doesn't include, though, that one reason vultures spread their wings and bask in sunlight is to let the Sun's rays make their feathers inhospitable to some of the bacteria that collects on them as a result of touching carrion. This is true of African vultures, and I have no proof that it applies to the turkey vulture, but it is food for thought.