Bird Album
Indian Vulture
Gyps indicus (Scopoli, 1786)
89–103 cmLength229 cmWingspan5.5 kgWeight
It has a small bald head, broad wings and a short tail, and circles on rising thermals.
Busiest months: February · Most records: India, Nepal
How to identify
Field marks
- Head small and dark brown; neck long and bare
- Body pale brown, flight feathers darker
- Wings broad, tail feathers short
- Bill long and yellowish, eyes dark
Where and when it's recorded
Busiest months: February · Most records: India, Nepal
Indian Vulture has been recorded at 27 of the 8,276 birding hotspots we track, in 2 countries and regions.
Records by month Northern Hemisphere
To protect this bird from disturbance, we don't list exact sites.
Countries and regions with the most records
eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.
About
The Indian vulture or long-billed vulture (Gyps indicus) is a bird of prey native to the Indian subcontinent. It is an Old World vulture belonging to the family of Accipitridae. It is a medium-sized vulture with a small, semi-bald head with little feathers, long beak, and wide dark colored wings.
Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia
Questions
How big is the Indian Vulture?
The Indian Vulture is about 89–103 cm long, with a wingspan of 229 cm and weighs around 5.5 kg.
Where does the Indian Vulture live?
Its breeding range: Oriental: southeastern Pakistan and southern India. It is most often recorded in India and Nepal.
When is the best time to see the Indian Vulture?
At the hotspots we track, it is recorded most in February (Northern Hemisphere).
Is the Indian Vulture endangered?
The IUCN Red List classifies the Indian Vulture as Critically Endangered.
What does the Indian Vulture eat?
Main food: Carrion.
What family is the Indian Vulture in?
It belongs to the family Kites, Hawks, Eagles (Accipitridae), order Accipitriformes.
At a glance
- Length
- 89–103 cm
- Wingspan
- 229 cm
- Weight
- 5.5 kg
- Habitat
- Grassland
- Diet
- Carrion
- Lifestyle
- Active on the ground
- Migration
- Resident (barely migrates)
- Conservation
- Critically Endangered
More measurements
- Wing
- 586 mm
- Tail
- 235 mm
- Bill
- 71 mm
- Tarsus
- 100 mm
Averages from the AVONET dataset; length from field guides where available.
Range
Oriental: southeastern Pakistan and southern India
Breeding range, IOC World Bird List 15.2
Classification
- Order
- Accipitriformes
- Family
- Kites, Hawks, Eagles Accipitridae
- Genus
- Gyps
Other birds in the genus Gyps
Himalayan VultureGyps himalayensis
White-rumped VultureGyps bengalensis
White-backed VultureGyps africanus
Slender-billed VultureGyps tenuirostris
Cape VultureGyps coprotheres
Rüppell's VultureGyps rueppelli
Griffon VultureGyps fulvus
Pearl KiteGampsonyx swainsonii
Scissor-tailed KiteChelictinia riocourii
White-tailed KiteElanus leucurus
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Free to use with credit: “Illustration: Bird Album (birdalbum.com)”. Drawn by AI from reference photos. ↗
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