Caught on camera: Himalayan Vultures in Kashmir (Photos)

Vijay Jamwal, a tunnel construction and geo-technical expert was working on an Indian Railways tunnel project in Ramban district of Jammu & Kashmir valley when he spotted a committee of vultures sitting around and probably finishing their meal. Vijay soon got busy with his camera and send us, some incredible images of the Himalayan Griffon Vultures. The birds seemed oblivious to the presence of this admirer and his photography allowing him to take many close up shots.

Vultures are scavenger birds, critical to the sustenance of an ecosystem because they eat carrions or dead animals and help stop the spread of epidemics. But last few decades have brought death in thousands for vultures in the Indian subcontinent because of the use of a pain-killer drug called diclofenac that was often given to livestock. When the birds fed on the dead carrions of these animals, they died due to poisoning.

While strong measures including banning of the drug has helped raise the population of the vultures, three vulture species are still critically endangered namely – White-rumped Vulture (Gyps bengalensis),  Indian Vulture (Gyps indicus) and the Slender-billed Vulture (Gyps tenuirostris).

The Himalyan Griffon Vulture (Gyps himalayensis) though has largely been unaffected by the drug because of its high mountain habitat. Here are some of the great shots shared by an aware ‘citizen scientist’.

Himalayan Griffon Vulture seen near a tunnel project in Ramban district of Jammu & Kashmir
Busy eating a carrion. Vultures are the essential scavengers of an ecosystem
Vultures are social birds often seen in groups

Himalayan griffon vulture is an old world vulture closely related to the European Vulture species
Often mentioned in the history of the Tibetan culture, it is said this bird often helped the locals when the dead could not be buried in the frozen soil
The Himalayan Griffon Vulture is the largest of the genus Gyps
As seen, the base of the neck of this vulture is surrounded by a whitish ruff
A crow seems to eye the meal too that the vultures are devouring
The Himalayan Griffon Vulture inhabits in mountains between 1500 and 4000 metres of elevation. In the Himalayas, this species is often down to 900 metres
IUCN Red list has evaluated Himalayan Vultures as Least Concern with the species having a stable population
The species is one of the nine species of vultures found in India
All images (c) Vijay Jamwal

All images have been clicked by Vijay Jamwal. If you wish to share similar images taken in the wild, do send us a mail through our contact page.

More Related Stories,

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Another Pain Killer Turns Killer for Vultures

14 Species of Birds on the Verge of Extinction

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Atula Gupta is the Founder and Editor of indiasendangered.com. Her work has appeared in a number of international websites, dailies and magazines including The Wire, Deccan Herald, New Indian Express, Down to Earth and Heritage India on issues related to environment and its conservation. She is also the author of Environment Science Essentials, a set of books for school children. She hopes this website provides a platform for people to be aware about species in the verge of extinction and heighten their conservation efforts.
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5 thoughts on “Caught on camera: Himalayan Vultures in Kashmir (Photos)

  1. I have clicked a vulchure in Tanakpur on 28.11.14.wish to share and eager to kknow more about vulchers and eagles.

  2. i found similar vultures near my house, sitting on two trees, more than 20 vultures, its raining here may be due to heavy snowfall in upper reaches of jammu, they had migrated here.

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