The condor, undisputed king of the Andean highlands.

Condors own the air. Heaven seems to have no secrets for these gliding masters.

Two of its largest habitats correspond to southern Peru. In the Colca Canyon in Arequipa and in the Mayobamba Canyon in Ayacucho.

The images come from the latter and correspond to the trip he made in 2016 invited by friends. It is one of the places where the sighting is closest.

The Colca Canyon is located in the valley of a river in southern Peru and is famous for being one of the deepest in the world. It is a famous hiking destination.

It is a habitat for the giant Andean condor, which can be seen from viewpoints such as the Cruz del Cóndor.

In fact, the Mayobamba Viewpoint must be the best place in Peru to observe this majestic Andean bird.
It is in these places where the largest number of condors on the planet are sighted.
The condor is recognized as the world's largest non-marine flying bird.

Its almost three meters of wingspan mark, mark, control and watch with suspicion what knew to be the largest empire in South America.

The Andean condor is a scavenger bird with a slender body of black plimas with a bare head and neck, that is, devoid of feathers.

The male has a fleshy growth on the top of the head called a crest. And both males and females as adults present, at the base of the neck, a white feather necklace.

The same white color that is repeated at the tip of its wings that allow it to develop a speed of up to 70 km per hour.

And they give it that beautiful and stately appearance, even though it originally belongs to the family of vultures.

Due to their great weight they prefer to live in windy areas that allow them to fly taking advantage of air currents without great effort and reach heights of over 7,000 meters.

The Incas believed that the condor was immortal.
According to legend, this extraordinary bird that can live up to 75 years, when it feels old and close to death, stands on the highest peak of the mountain. It retracts its wings, gathers its legs and drops down into the bottom of the ravine, where its reign ends. But it is a symbolic death. Because it is reborn, it returns to the nest and regenerates. To start a new cycle, a new life.

The condor symbolizes strength, intelligence, and majesty.

It is one of the most respected animals since ancient times.

They have a single calf every two years and must take care of it for a whole year. Hence all the measures taken to prevent its extinction.

 Image Gallery.

Article originally published in: https://hive.blog/hive-169099/@argenvista/el-condor-rey-indiscutido-del-altiplano-andino-the-condor-undisputed-king-of-the-andean-highlands