UPSC Articles
Poisoning of Himalayan griffons vultures
Part of: Prelims and GS-III Biodiversity
Context: At least 100 vultures — all Himalayan griffons — died of suspected poisoning in Assam.
- Such incidents have been happening since many years.
Himalayan griffon
- The Himalayan vulture (Gyps himalayensis) or Himalayan griffon vulture is an Old World vulture native to the Himalayas and the adjoining Tibetan Plateau.
- Old World vultures are vultures that are found in the Old World, i.e. the continents of Europe, Asia and Africa.
- They belong to the family Accipitridae, which also includes eagles, buzzards, kites, and hawks
- It is one of the two largest Old World vultures and true raptors.
- It is listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List.
- A study by the Bombay Natural History Society and other organisations in the 1990s found that the population of the Gyps group in India and Nepal declined from about 40 million by 99.9% in just two decades.
- Himalayan griffon, white-backed and slender-billed are among its members.
News Source: TH
