Indian vulture

The Indian vulture or long-billed vulture (Gyps indicus) is a bird of prey that lives in the Indian subcontinent. It belongs to a group called Old World vultures and is part of the Accipitridae family. This vulture is medium-sized, with a small head that has few feathers, a long beak, and wide, dark wings. It mostly nests on small cliffs and hilly areas in central India and south India.

The Indian vulture is very important for its environment, making it a keystone species. Sadly, it was listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List in 2002 because its numbers dropped sharply during what is called the Indian vulture crisis. Today, scientists think there are between 5,000 and 15,000 adult Indian vultures left in the wild. The main reason for this drop was a medicine called diclofenac given to cows to help with joint pain. When vultures ate meat from these cows, the medicine harmed their kidneys. To help the vultures, rules were made to stop the use of diclofenac in India, Pakistan, and Nepal starting in 2006.

In some areas, the Indian vulture lives alongside other vultures, such as the slender-billed vulture and the white-rumped vulture.

Taxonomy

The Indian vulture belongs to the group of birds called Gyps, which are found mainly in the Old World. Its name comes from the fact that it lives in the Indian subcontinent. The word "Gyps" comes from Ancient Greek and means "vulture", while "indicus" refers to India.

Until 2001, the slender-billed vulture was considered a type of Indian vulture. But scientists studied its DNA and decided it was actually a separate kind of bird, so they gave it its own name: the slender-billed vulture. This change happened after looking at both nuclear and mitochondrial DNA.

Distribution and habitat

The Indian vulture can be found from southeastern Pakistan to south India and to Indochina and the northern Malay Peninsula in the east. Today, most of them live in central and peninsular India, south of the Gangetic plains. They are also in southwest Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal.

These birds live in many types of places, from semi-desert areas to dry hills, open fields, and lands near villages. They can also be seen close to garbage dumps and places where animals are processed in cities. Indian vultures do not move around a lot, but they can travel far each day looking for food. They make their homes on cliffs or tall buildings, and rarely in trees.

Description

The Indian vulture is a medium-sized bird with a pale brown body and darker flight feathers. It has white thighs, broad wings, and a short tail. Its head is small and mostly bare, with a long, yellowish beak and dark eyes.

These vultures can be 89–103 cm long with a wingspan of about 2.22–2.58 meters. Their bald heads help them stay clean while feeding and also help them control their body temperature in different weather. They weigh between 5.5 and 6.3 kilograms, making them smaller than the Eurasian griffon.

Behaviour and ecology

The Indian vulture is a strong flier that soars on warm air currents. It can glide at speeds of 35 km/h (22 mph) and fly for six to seven hours without stopping. These vultures usually live in small groups, sometimes with other types of vultures, and often nest on cliffs.

The Indian vulture helps keep its environment clean by eating dead animals. This prevents diseases from spreading. They search large areas for food, using their sharp eyesight to find carcasses. They are often drawn to places where many birds gather, as this usually means there is food nearby. These vultures mainly eat dead cattle and leftovers from larger animals. Sometimes they need to step back to let bigger birds eat first.

Indian vultures can live for 40 to 45 years in the wild. They become mature at five years old. However, they often come close to people, where they face dangers such as flying into power lines, trains, windmills, and roads. Some medicines given to cattle to help with joint pain have sadly hurt vultures when the birds eat the cattle, leading to health problems.

Indian vultures build their nests on cliffs, tall buildings, and sometimes trees or old structures. They start building in September and breed between November and March. They usually pair up for life, and the female lays one egg each year. Both parents help keep the egg warm until it hatches after about 50 days. The nests are often near water and placed high up to stay comfortable.

Status and conservation

Starting in the 1990s, the Indian vulture population dropped by 97% in about 10 to 15 years. This happened mainly in the Indian subcontinent. Since 2002, the species has been listed as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List. Today, there are only about 5,000 to 15,000 of these birds left in the wild.

The main reason for this drop was a medicine called diclofenac, given to cattle to help with joint pain. When cows that had this medicine died, vultures that ate them became very sick. This medicine caused serious health problems for the birds. Because vultures help keep the environment clean by eating dead animals, their decline led to many dead animals left around, which created health risks for people and animals.

In 2006, the government of India banned the use of diclofenac for animals. Other countries like Nepal and Pakistan also banned it. Scientists found safer medicines for cattle, and efforts began to breed vultures in special centers to help their numbers grow again. These vultures will be released once it is safe for them. Conservation programs continue to work on protecting these important birds and keeping harmful medicines away from them.

Cultural and economic significance

Indian vultures are sometimes misunderstood and feared because they eat animals that have already passed away. However, they are very important for nature because they help clean up dead animals. In places with many cows and limited ways to handle dead animals, vultures help keep things clean and safe.

In stories from ancient India, there is a character named Jatayu who looks like a big bird. Some people in India, called the Parsi community, use special tall towers where they place dead bodies so that vultures can eat them.