Editing New World vulture (section)

==In culture==
The American black vulture and the [[king vulture]] appear in a variety of [[Maya civilization|Maya]] hieroglyphs in [[Mayan codices]]. The king vulture is commonly represented, with its [[glyph]] being easily distinguishable by the knob on the bird's beak and by the concentric circles that represent the bird's eyes.<ref name="Tozzer:1910">Tozzer (1910)</ref> It is sometimes portrayed as a god with a human body and a bird head.<ref name="Tozzer:1910" /> According to Mayan mythology, this god often carried messages between humans and the other gods. It is also used to represent Cozcaquauhtli, the thirteenth day of the month in the [[Mayan calendar]].<ref name="Tozzer:1910" /> Meanwhile, the American black vulture is normally connected with death or shown as a bird of prey, and its glyph is often depicted attacking humans. This species lacks the religious connections that the king vulture has. While some of the glyphs clearly show the American black vulture's open nostril and hooked beak, some are assumed to be this species because they are vulture-like, painted black, and lack the king vulture's knob.<ref name="Tozzer:1910" />