---
title: "Lesser Yellow-headed Vulture"
description: "Cathartes burrovianus — Birds. The lesser yellow-headed vulture (Cathartes burrovianus), also known as the savannah vulture, is a species of bird in the New World vulture family Cathartidae."
canonical: https://animalchecklist.com/animal/lesser-yellow-headed-vulture
last_updated: 2026-09-20
---

# Lesser Yellow-headed Vulture

> Cathartes burrovianus — Birds. The lesser yellow-headed vulture (Cathartes burrovianus), also known as the savannah vulture, is a species of bird in the New World vulture family Cathartidae.

- Scientific name: *Cathartes burrovianus*
- Category: `birds` (Birds)
- Habitats: `grassland` (Fields & meadows), `freshwater` (Lakes & rivers), `savanna` (Savanna)
- iNaturalist observations: 6281
- Wikidata: [Q852751](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q852751)
- iNaturalist taxon: [4761](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/4761)

## Names

- en: Lesser Yellow-headed Vulture
- de: Savannen-Gelbkopfgeier
- es: Zopilote sabanero
- fr: Urubu à tête jaune
- nl: Kleine geelkopgier
- pt: Urubu-de-cabeça-amarela
- pl: Sępnik pstrogłowy

## Countries with the most observations

BR (2387), MX (1277), AR (543), CO (425), PA (287), BZ (167), PE (116), HN (107), GF (87), BO (84), CR (79), UY (67)

## Summary

The lesser yellow-headed vulture (Cathartes burrovianus), also known as the savannah vulture, is a species of bird in the New World vulture family Cathartidae. It was considered to be the same species as the greater yellow-headed vulture until they were split in 1964. It is found in Mexico, Central America, and South America in seasonally wet or flooded lowland grassland, swamps, and heavily degraded former forest. It is a large bird, with a wingspan of 150–165 cm (59–65 in). The body plumage is black, and the head and neck, which are featherless, are pale orange with red or blue areas. It lacks a syrinx, so therefore…

Text: Wikipedia (en), CC BY-SA 4.0 — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lesser_yellow-headed_vulture

## Photo

![Lesser Yellow-headed Vulture](https://animalchecklist.com/img/animals/lesser-yellow-headed-vulture/medium.jpg)

Photo: Frank Thomas Sautter · CC0 · inaturalist — https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/385046180

## Machine access

`GET https://animalchecklist.com/api/v1/animals/lesser-yellow-headed-vulture?lang=en` — see [openapi.json](https://animalchecklist.com/openapi.json).