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[Anew]

I believe this was broadly practiced in pre-history, and have brought the subject up on the following threads :

Allasdale Dunes

Towie Petrosphere

The WandsWorth Shield

Lozenges & Cupmarks

I am informed by member RuneMage of megalithic.co.uk that vultures do not frequent the British Isles .

I now consider the Common Buzzard to be the most likely agent of this practice there, particularly for the male's spiraling pre-spring mating display, which i feel may be linked to the spiral symbol used in the Isles.

[Anew]

Another aspect that i assume the common buzzard shares with hawks, eagles and the like is the habit of circling while on patrol . I feel this would have elevated these birds in the opinion of the ring-oriented culture of the Isles . And that such may be attested to by the Wandsworth Shield, which draws the ends of the bird-of-prey-and/or-carrion's wings into circles, possibly indicative of a regard for their (circling) modus ; (i note that this would be an Iron Age find, and thus substantially later, but think the Neotlithic/Bronze-Age belief system still had an influence upon traditions at the time) .

Also, as mentioned in other threads, i believe that when the sunlight shone down on gliding birds of this type, the image of a bucranium would appear as the aft part of the wings became translucent while the fore-part and body remained opaque . Though this would be most elegant with the lightly-muscled vulture, the more powerful (for its size) buzzard should offer a similar, though more stoutly horned, image . I feel that this too would have made an impression on the people of the time .

Thirdly, as can be seen in this photo, the underside of the buzzard's tail can display lines of dots which i feel might be connected to the fan-shaped array, "Hill o'Many Stanes", in Scotland .

Other birds, (besides vultures, ravens and/or carrion crows), have been suggested, and i think the choice of preffered agent was likely to have been regional one and at times a way of expressing tribal identity . Where spiral carvings and the common buzzard were both present, i feel it was their most likely choice . But an interesting counterpoint is provided by the backstory of Mên Scryfa in Cornwall . At least at the time the stone was erected, the locals held the raven in high regard . Ravens & crows being much different than the Buzzard, (among other things, they fly in iconically straight lines, and are more flock-oriented), their veneration may indicate either changing times or a distinctly different local culture, (if excarnation was practiced in Iron-Age Cornwall, or if the tradition reached back into the Bronze Age / Neolithic) .