---
title: "Urubu-rei"
description: "Sarcoramphus papa — Aves. The king vulture (Sarcoramphus papa) is a large bird found in Central and South America."
canonical: https://animalchecklist.com/pt/animal/king-vulture
last_updated: 2026-09-20
---

# Urubu-rei

> Sarcoramphus papa — Aves. The king vulture (Sarcoramphus papa) is a large bird found in Central and South America.

- Scientific name: *Sarcoramphus papa*
- Category: `birds` (Aves)
- Habitats: `forest` (Floresta), `jungle` (Selva)
- iNaturalist observations: 4658
- Wikidata: [Q192705](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q192705)
- iNaturalist taxon: [4763](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/4763)

## Names

- en: King Vulture
- de: Königsgeier
- es: Zopilote rey
- fr: Sarcoramphe roi
- nl: Koningsgier
- pt: Urubu-rei
- pl: Kondor królewski

## Countries with the most observations

CR (849), BR (769), MX (413), CO (318), PE (219), PA (213), AR (166), EC (156), BZ (137), GT (99), BO (93), HN (85)

## Summary

The king vulture (Sarcoramphus papa) is a large bird found in Central and South America. It is a member of the New World vulture family Cathartidae. This vulture lives predominantly in tropical lowland forests stretching from southern Mexico to northern Argentina. It is the only surviving member of the genus Sarcoramphus, although fossil members are known.
Large and predominantly white, the king vulture has gray to black ruff, flight, and tail feathers. The head and neck are bald, with the skin color varying, including yellow, orange, blue, purple, and red. The king vulture has a noticeable orange fleshy caruncle…

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

## Photo

![Urubu-rei](https://animalchecklist.com/img/animals/king-vulture/medium.jpg)

Photo: NINA WENÓLI · CC0 · inaturalist — https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/317498451

## Machine access

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