650-Year-Old Shoe Found in Vulture's Nest

Inaugurating "Weird Nature Thursdays"

Whenever I grow weary of studying human affairs, with all of their sound and fury, I sometimes take a bit of time off to learn more about the natural world. Ever since I was boy I have found this a fascinating and fun diversion, and for many years I had a subscription to National Geographic and Smithsonian. Alas, the editors of both journals, especially the latter, have been influenced by current ideological preoccupations, but National Geographic still turns out some interesting reports.

National Geographic recently reported a fascinating new study (The Bearded Vulture as an accumulator of historical remains: Insights for future ecological and biocultural studies) published in ECOLOGY.

Between 2008 and 2014, scientists rappelled down cliffs in Spain to examine several bearded vulture nests and the objects they contained. They discovered a 650-year-old shoe, along with more than 200 other human artifacts, including some from the Middle Ages.

The bearded vulture is one of nature’s weirdest birds. Unlike other vultures, he isn’t interested in the flesh of dead animals, preferring to be the absolute last at the table to eat the bones. He is literally a bone eater, with gastric acid so powerful that it dissolves bone fragments.

Because he doesn’t stick his head into decomposing carcasses, he is, alone among vultures, adorned with plumage on his head and neck, hence his name. Until I read the ECOLOGY paper, I didn’t realize that he is also a collector of human artifacts. If you like weird nature stories, you will doubtless be engrossed by the report.

The paper reminds me of a wonderful scene in the novel Master and Commander, shortly after the HMS Surprise sets sail from Port Mahon, Minorca. Captain Jack Aubrey and his new friend, Dr. Stephen Maturin, are just getting to know each other. Dr. Maturin sees a bearded vulture flying near the ship and exclaims in delight, “Look, it’s a bearded vulture!”

Captain Aubrey, who does not share the doctor’s fascination with the natural world, replies, “Well... I dare say he forgot to shave this morning,” and falls into a fit of hysterics at his own joke.

This sets up what proves to be a perfect literary device, with recurring moments of comic relief throughout the entire Aubrey-Maturin series, with Aubrey making corny jokes, and the dry-witted Maturin quietly enduring them out of love and patience for his friend.

The Australian director, Peter Weir, perfectly captured one of these scenes at the end of his film adaptation of Master and Commander. Dr. Maturin has his heart set on returning to the Galapagos to examine the flightless cormorant, but due to a ruse de guerre perpetrated by the true captain of the Acheron, the Surprise has to change course to intercept the Acheron instead of sailing back to the Galapagos.