* The Lappet-faced Vulture is one of the most imposing birds, with a massive meat-hook of a bill used for ripping through the skin of a carcass. * Its wingspan is close to over 9 feet, it weighs up to 22 pounds and stands almost 3.28 feet tall. * It inhabits fairly open savannas and is absent from areas with closed dense woodlands. * Just like its counterparts, this species is rapidly retreating from its range due to various threats. * One of its biggest threats is poisoning. There has been an upsurge of poachers of large mammals in the past decade, and the carcasses are laced with poison (some of which is intended for vultures) so that poaching activities remain hidden. * These vultures are sensitive to disturbance at their nests, which are built in the canopies of large thorn trees. Outside of protected areas they now battle to find suitable nesting sites to rear their young. * Sadly, their body parts are sold in African traditional medicine markets due to a belief that vultures have magical properties. * It has suffered major decreases in numbers in West Africa and is possibly extinct in some of the North and West African countries.