Long billed vulture, DNP

The Indian vulture or the long billed vulture is an Old World vulture native to India, Pakistan and Nepal. It has been listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List since 2002, as the population severely declined. Indian vultures died of renal failure caused by diclofenac poisoning. Captive-breeding programmes for several species of Indian vulture have been started. The vultures are long lived and slow in breeding, so the programmes are expected to take decades. Vultures reach breeding age at about five years old. It is hoped that captive-bred birds will be released to the wild when the environment is clear of diclofenac. It breeds mainly on hilly crags in central and peninsular India.

The Indian vulture is medium in size and bulky. Its body and covert feathers are pale, its quills are darker. Its wings are broad and its tail feathers short. Its head and neck are almost bald, and its bill is rather long. The species breeds mainly on cliffs, but is known to use trees to nest in Rajasthan. It may also breed on high human-made structures. Like other vultures it is a scavenger, feeding mostly from carcasses of dead animals which it finds by soaring over savannah and around human habitation. They often move in flocks. This is classified as critically endangered by IUCN.