White-rumped Vulture

The white-rumped vulture is the smallest of the Gyps vultures, but still a very large bird, 75–93 cm long with a wingspan of 1.92–2.6 m and a weight of 3.5–7.5 kg. It has an unfeathered head and neck, very broad wings, short tail feathers and a white neck ruff. It was once believed close to the African white-backed vulture and was known as the Oriental white-backed vulture (Wikipedia, general species account).

It builds its nest on tall trees, often near human habitation, in northern and central India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh and Southeast Asia, laying one egg; the main nesting period was November to March, with eggs mainly in January. It was originally very common, especially on the Gangetic plains, often nesting in avenue trees in large cities, and in the 1980s the global population was estimated at several million and thought to be the most abundant large bird of prey in the world. It is now threatened by diclofenac poisoning, which kills by kidney failure. SoIB 2023 rates it a High conservation priority, with a rapid long-term decline of about 98% (Wikipedia, general species account; SoIB 2023).