The Vulture and the Green-Pigeon

Vulture and Green-Pigeon were friends.

Then one day someone told Vulture that Green-Pigeon was sick. "He's not likely to live long," they said.

"I will go to him immediately!" Vulture exclaimed.

Meanwhile, a doctor visited Green-Pigeon. "You are going to die," the doctor divined, "unless you transfer this sickness to a friend."

At just that moment, Vulture flew in, so Green-Pigeon passed the sickness on to him. Vulture was sick for three years, and all the feathers fell off his head. That's how Vulture became bald.

After that, Vulture always said, "If you visit a sick friend, keep your distance."

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Inspired by: "The Vulture and the Green Pigeon" in Thirty-Two Folk-Tales of the Edo-Speaking Peoples of Nigeria (published in Folklore) by Northcote W. Thomas, 1920.
Notes: You can read the original story online.

African green pigeon

African vulture