BEARDED VULTURE: THE HIGH MOUNTAIN HERMIT

The film, shot on the mountaintops of Crete, takes us to the last refuge of the bearded vulture (Gypaetus barbatus) in Greece and one of the few remaining such refuges in Southern Europe. We will get to know Europe’s largest raptor and watch it as it soars majestically through the sky. The bearded vulture is a solitary bird which feeds almost exclusively on the bones of dead animals which it smashes by letting them drop onto the rocks from a great height. The film includes footage of the vulture’s unusual habit of ‘painting’ its normally white plumage; the vulture and his lifelong mate raising and protecting their sole fledgling; and the moving scene of the young vulture testing his wings and flying for the first time. The bearded vulture, the rarest vulture species in Europe and a true lord of the mountains, is being threatened with extinction, primarily because of human activities and its sensitive place at the top of the food chain. Initially made as an educational film intended to familiarize the public with this bird and to raise awareness among people living close to its habitat, this documentary is ultimately aimed at all of us who wish to re-assess the choices and priorities of our society.