Slender-billed Vulture (Gyps tenuirostris)

An understudied bird, the slender-billed vulture has recently gained species status having been considered to be a subspecies of Gyps indicus prior to 2000. It builds compact nests in loose colonies of fewer than ten individuals at heights of seven to fifteen metres in large and leafy trees. The breeding season is between October and April, when pairs of vultures produce a single egg. Incubation duty is shared between both parents (5). Feeding solely on carrion, the slender-billed vulture prefers the remains of cattle (5), but will also consume the carcases of wild deer and pigs killed by tigers (6), as well as meat discarded by humans (2). The slender-billed vulture tolerates the presence of other vulture and scavenger species while it eats, gorging itself, and then resting to digest the food (5). The slender-billed vulture does not migrate, but when young or unpaired, can cover huge areas in flight (5).

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