Zahoor-Salmi
Long Billed Vulture
Gyps indicus breeds in south-east Pakistan and peninsular India south of the Gangetic plain, north to Delhi, east through Madhya Pradesh, south to the Nilgiris, and occasionally further south (Collar et al. 2001). The species was first recorded in Nepal in 2011 (Subedi and DeCandido 2013). It was common until very recently, but since the mid-1990s has suffered a catastrophic decline (over 97%) throughout its range. This was first noticed in Keoladeo National Park, India (Prakash et al. 2003), where counts of feeding birds fell from 816 birds in 1985-1986 to just 25 in 1998-1999. Just one tiny population in the Ramanagaram Hills of Karnataka is known to remain in inland southern India, and it is rare elsewhere within its former range (Prakash et al. 2007). Data indicates that the rate of population decline of G. tenuirostris and G. indicus combined has now slowed in India (Prakash et al. 2012).Extensive research has identified the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) diclofenac to be the cause behind this rapid population collapse (Green et al. 2004, Oaks et al. 2004a, Shultz et al. 2004, Swan et al. 2005). This drug, used to treat domestic livestock, is ingested by vultures feeding on their carcasses leading to renal failure causing visceral gout (Oaks et al. 2004a,b; Swan et al. 2005, Gilbert et al. 2006). It is now rare in Pakistan, and although a colony of 200-250 pairs was discovered in 2003 in Sindh Province (A. A. Khan in litt. 2003). In 2007, the total Indian population, based on extrapolations from road transects, was estimated at 45,000 individuals, with a combined average annual decline for this species and G. tenuirostris of over 16% during 2000-2007 (Prakash et al. 2007). It is estimated that its relative abundance in Pakistan declined by 61% between 2003-2004 and 2006-2007, this was followed by a 55% increase by 2007-2008 (Chaudhry et al. 2012).
IUCN
Long Billed Vulture
Gyps indicus breeds in south-east Pakistan and peninsular India south of the Gangetic plain, north to Delhi, east through Madhya Pradesh, south to the Nilgiris, and occasionally further south (Collar et al. 2001). The species was first recorded in Nepal in 2011 (Subedi and DeCandido 2013). It was common until very recently, but since the mid-1990s has suffered a catastrophic decline (over 97%) throughout its range. This was first noticed in Keoladeo National Park, India (Prakash et al. 2003), where counts of feeding birds fell from 816 birds in 1985-1986 to just 25 in 1998-1999. Just one tiny population in the Ramanagaram Hills of Karnataka is known to remain in inland southern India, and it is rare elsewhere within its former range (Prakash et al. 2007). Data indicates that the rate of population decline of G. tenuirostris and G. indicus combined has now slowed in India (Prakash et al. 2012).Extensive research has identified the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) diclofenac to be the cause behind this rapid population collapse (Green et al. 2004, Oaks et al. 2004a, Shultz et al. 2004, Swan et al. 2005). This drug, used to treat domestic livestock, is ingested by vultures feeding on their carcasses leading to renal failure causing visceral gout (Oaks et al. 2004a,b; Swan et al. 2005, Gilbert et al. 2006). It is now rare in Pakistan, and although a colony of 200-250 pairs was discovered in 2003 in Sindh Province (A. A. Khan in litt. 2003). In 2007, the total Indian population, based on extrapolations from road transects, was estimated at 45,000 individuals, with a combined average annual decline for this species and G. tenuirostris of over 16% during 2000-2007 (Prakash et al. 2007). It is estimated that its relative abundance in Pakistan declined by 61% between 2003-2004 and 2006-2007, this was followed by a 55% increase by 2007-2008 (Chaudhry et al. 2012).
IUCN