Long-billed Vulture (Gyps indicus) near Ramgarh, on the outskirts of Jaisalmer.
Once a common sight in the countryside and even parts of the desert, population of three key Vulture species (Long-billed, Slender-billed and White-backed) has declined in the Indian subcontinent by as much as 97 percent in the last 10 years. Lethal effects of the drug Declofenac, a common pain killer given to Cattle (on the dead bodies of which Vultures feed) is cited to be the main cause of their disappearance / deaths.
Photo date: Sept. 2004
