White-backed Vulture - Gyps africanus

The White-backed Vulture is an Old World vulture. It generally eats soft tissue as its beak is not powerful enough to tear the thick hide of large carcasses. This bird feeds in groups and it is not unusual to see a hundred or so fellow creatures gathering around the same dead body. It can be very brazen and approach dwellings if the opportunity presents itself.

CLASS : Aves
ORDER : Accipitriformes
FAMILY : Accipitridae
WINGSPAN : 2.2 m
WEIGHT : 4.2 – 7.2 kg
CLUTCH SIZE : 1 egg
INCUBATION : 56 days
LIFE EXPECTANCY : 19 years
DIET : it feeds on dead animals and carcasses
NATURAL HABITAT : it lives in woodland areas, savannahs and steppes
RANGE : Africa

Conservation status info

 

CR : Critically Endangered

This species has been classified as “CR: Critically Endangered” since 2015.

This species has declined significantly in some parts of its range and generally it is suspected of having undergone a rapid decline due to the loss and transformation of its habitat (converted into farming areas), the decline in its sources of food, hunting for trade, persecution, collisions, poisoning and pesticides. This decline is likely to continue in the future. Newly released data suggests it is a lot more serious than previously thought.