Context: In a world-first milestone, five captive-bred Slender-billed vultures along with five White-rumped vultures were released into the wild using the ‘Soft Release’ scientific method in the Biswanath Wildlife Division of Kaziranga National Park, Assam.
About Slender-billed vultures and White-rumped vultures:
About Slender-Billed Vulture (Gyps tenuirostris):
What It Is?
- An Old World scavenger bird of prey belonging to the family Accipitridae. Once considered a subspecies of the Indian Vulture (under the name Long-billed Vulture), it is now classified as a distinct species native to South Asia and parts of Southeast Asia.
Habitat & Distribution:
- Habitat: Savannas, open arid landscapes, dry deciduous forests, and river valleys, primarily at lower elevations. It avoids dense human habitations but occasionally visits slaughterhouses or garbage dumps for carrion.
- Distribution: Found in sub-Himalayan regions across northern/eastern India (notably Assam), Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar, and Cambodia.
IUCN Red List: Critically Endangered
Key Characteristics:
- Distinct Physical Features: Medium-to-large vulture measuring 77–103 cm in length with a 196–258 cm wingspan.
- Bare Head & Neck: Features an unfeathered, narrow, elongated black head and a long, skinny black neck, giving it a scruffy or disheveled look.
- Bill Structure: Possesses a distinct, shiny, slender beak adapted for deep carcass feeding.
- Plumage: Covered in dark brown, light brown, and beige body feathers, with cream-colored feathering on its legs visible during flight.
About White-Rumped Vulture (Gyps bengalensis):
What It Is?
- The smallest among the Old World Gyps vultures native to South and Southeast Asia. Formerly recognized as one of the most abundant large birds of prey in the world during the 1980s, its global population collapsed by over 99% within two decades due to veterinary drug toxicity.
Habitat & Distribution:
- Habitat: Highly adaptable across open landscapes, grasslands, open deciduous forests, and agricultural areas. Uniquely adapted to live close to human settlements, towns, and slaughterhouse grounds.
- Distribution: Resident populations remain across northern/central India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, and localized pockets of Southeast Asia.
IUCN Red List: Critically Endangered
Key Characteristics:
- Size Profile: Measures 75–93 cm in length, weighs 3.5–6 kg, and has a wingspan ranging between 1.92–2.13 meters.
- Signature White Patch: Features a prominent white patch on its lower back/rump and underwing coverts, which is clearly visible when the bird is in flight or stretching its wings.
- Plumage & Collar: Adult birds have overall dark/black body plumage with a distinctive whitish downy ruff or collar surrounding the base of the neck.
- Tail Feather Distinction: Possesses 12 tail feathers, contrasting with the 14 tail feathers found in most other Gyps vulture species.
- Lethal Drug Vulnerability: Highly susceptible to renal failure caused by consuming livestock carcasses treated with banned Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDs) such as diclofenac, aceclofenac, ketoprofen, and nimesulide.
