Bird Album
White-rumped Vulture
Gyps bengalensis (Gmelin, JF, 1788)
75–93 cmLength244 cmWingspan4.4 kgWeight
The adult has a whitish back, rump and underwing coverts, with a bare head and neck.
Busiest months: February–March · Most records: India, Nepal, Cambodia
Looks like Griffon Vulture
How to identify
Field marks
- Head and neck bare, head tinged pink
- A single white feather ruff around base of neck
- Adult back, rump and underwing coverts whitish
- Bill silver, cere dark
Male, female and young
Juvenile mostly dark, taking four or five years to acquire adult plumage.
Voice
Usually silent; hisses and roars near the nest or when competing for food.
Similar species
Where and when it's recorded
White-rumped Vulture has been recorded at 86 of the 8,171 birding hotspots we track, in 5 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 white-rumped vulture (Gyps bengalensis) is an Old World vulture native to South and Southeast Asia. It has been listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List since 2000, as the population severely declined.
Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia
Questions
How big is the White-rumped Vulture?
The White-rumped Vulture is about 75–93 cm long, with a wingspan of 244 cm and weighs around 4.4 kg.
Where does the White-rumped Vulture live?
Its breeding range: Oriental: Iran through Southeast Asia. It is most often recorded in India, Nepal and Cambodia.
When is the best time to see the White-rumped Vulture?
At the hotspots we track, it is recorded most in February and March (Northern Hemisphere).
Is the White-rumped Vulture endangered?
The IUCN Red List classifies the White-rumped Vulture as Critically Endangered.
What does the White-rumped Vulture eat?
Main food: Carrion.
What family is the White-rumped Vulture in?
It belongs to the family Kites, Hawks, Eagles (Accipitridae), order Accipitriformes.
At a glance
- Length
- 75–93 cm
- Wingspan
- 244 cm
- Weight
- 4.4 kg
- Habitat
- Grassland
- Diet
- Carrion
- Lifestyle
- Active on the ground
- Migration
- Resident (barely migrates)
- Conservation
- Critically Endangered
More measurements
- Wing
- 552 mm
- Tail
- 214 mm
- Bill
- 65 mm
- Tarsus
- 99 mm
Averages from the AVONET dataset; length from field guides where available.
Range
Oriental: Iran through Southeast Asia
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-backed VultureGyps africanus
Indian VultureGyps indicus
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
Download illustration
Free to use with credit: “Illustration: Bird Album (birdalbum.com)”. Drawn by AI from a reference photo by Sourav Halder. ↗
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