OK, Walter, I'll see your Linnaeus and raise you 2/3 of a century. Here's
what Willughby and Ray had to say about raptors in their 1668 book
"Ornithology."

In their dichotomous Table of Land-Fowl, birds are divided according to
whether they have straight bills or a "crooked beak and talons." The
hook-bills are further divided into the frugivorous (parrots) and the
"Carnivorous & rapacious, called birds of prey, and those either Nocturnal
[owls] or Diurnal." The diurnal birds are further categorized as follows:

Diurnal birds of prey

I. "the greater"
   A. "the more generous [larger], called Eagles"
   B. "the more cowardly & sluggish, called Vultures"

II. "the lesser, called in Latine [sic] Accipiters"
   A. "the more generous... called Hawks" and used by falconers
        1. long-winged (e.g., Falcon)
        2. short-winged (e.g., "Goshawk and Sparrow-hawk")
   B. "the more cowardly & sluggish, or else indocile" and thus not of
interest to falconers
        1. the greater (e.g., Buzzards)
        2. the lesser ("European" -- Butcherbirds or Shrikes, and
"Exotic" -- Birds of Paradise [!])

The text has a long description of the "Characteristic notes of Rapacious
Birds in general." These include a large head, short neck, "hooked, strong
and sharp-pointed Beak and Talons," the lack of a gizzard (unlike
granivorous birds), and sharp eyesight. Raptors are also long-lived and can
endure a long period without food. The females are larger, "more beautiful
and lovely... stronger, more fierce."

Interestingly, Willughby and Ray also weren't sure whether vultures totally
fit the profile. They note that although Aristotle wrote "No birds of prey
are gregarious," this generalization didn't quite hold true because vultures
have been observed to "fly in company fifty or sixty together."

So if you can't decide whether or not vultures are raptors, be reassured
that you're following in the footsteps of great ornithologists of earlier
centuries.

Janet Millenson
Potomac, MD (Montgomery County)

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"Look at the birds!" -- Pascal the parrot