Red-Headed Vulture: In News
A rare red-headed vulture sighted at an altitude of about 2,650 metres in Uttarakhand’s Munsiyari.
- The Red-headed vulture (Sarcogyps calvus) is an Old World vulture.
- It is also known as the Asian king vulture, Indian black vulture, or Pondicherry vulture.
- They are usually found in open country and in cultivated and semi-desert areas, deciduous forests foothills, river valleys and also in mountainous
- It is mainly found in South Asia with small disjunct populations in some parts of Southeast Asia.
- Typically found in Central India, Nepal, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, and parts of Kerala, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu.
- Breeding: Breeding typically takes place between November and January.
- Diet: These are scavenging birds, feeding mostly on carcasses of dead animals which they find by sight.
- Threats: It was extensively found in India but its numbers drastically reduced after diclofenac poisoning
- Conservation Status
- IUCN Red List: Critically Endangered
- Wildlife Protection Act, 1972: Schedule 1
