Wildlifeof Bhutan
Himalayan Vulture
Birds of Prey
Photo: (c) Sagnik Dutta Roy, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY 4.0 (May be cropped or resized)
Gyps himalayensis
Basic stats
Diet
Carrion, exclusively
Habitat
Himalayas and foothills; tends not to range below 1,215m
Range
Kazakhstan and Afghanistan east through Pakistan, India, Nepal and Bhutan to western China and Mongolia
Wingspan
2.56–3.1m
Weight
6–12.5kg, averaging about 9kg
The Himalayan griffon is an Old World vulture native to the Himalayas and foothills and the adjacent Tibetan Plateau. It weighs 6 to 12.5kg, averaging about 9kg, with a wingspan quoted at 2.56 to 3.1m. It has dark brown wing quills and tail, a pale buff uniform upperside and buffy leg feathers, a pale blue face and a yellowish bill (Wikipedia, general species account).
Its range runs from Kazakhstan and Afghanistan through Pakistan, India, Nepal and Bhutan to western China and Mongolia, and it tends not to range below about 1,215m. It differs from the Indian vulture by a stouter bill. It makes a rattling sound when descending on a carcass and has been recorded eating carrion exclusively, some of it putrid.
Quick answers
- What does the Himalayan Vulture eat?
- Carrion, exclusively
- What habitat does the Himalayan Vulture live in?
- Himalayas and foothills; tends not to range below 1,215m
- Where is the Himalayan Vulture found?
- Kazakhstan and Afghanistan east through Pakistan, India, Nepal and Bhutan to western China and Mongolia
- What is the wingspan of the Himalayan Vulture?
- 2.56–3.1m
- How much does the Himalayan Vulture weigh?
- 6–12.5kg, averaging about 9kg