General

Vultures are impressive raptors specialized in carrion consumption. They spend significant time soaring and circling at great heights while searching for carrion.

First-year birds are relatively easy to age due to their uniform plumage and pointed juvenile feathers. The shape of their secondaries is particularly distinctive, forming a serrated trailing edge on the wings. It takes several years for vultures to acquire their adult plumage, with their appearance gradually transitioning from first plumage (1p) to full adult.

Second-year birds can be identified by their partially developed body feathers, with some feathers being 2g, including new inner primaries. However, most of the remiges remain 1g, and in rare cases, all primaries may remain unmoulted, making age determination more challenging due to the absence of moult limits.

If a vulture has three generations of primaries, with the outer ones still 1g, it is in its third year. Some 1g remiges can persist for three years, aiding in aging. However, precise aging becomes often impossible later due to the individually variable maturation of plumage.

In vultures, the head is often dirty and the true colour is not well visible.

Distribution

Some mountain areas of southern Europe and NW Africa, also in some areas of sub-Saharan Africa. Mountainous areas in Western Asia, Himalaya, Tibet and from Central Asia to Mongolia. Mostly sedentary.

Life cycle

Summer breeder in the region. Protracted moulting season from spring to autumn. Largely sedentary, but home ranges are large.

General

Also commonly called Bearded Vulture. Distinctive-looking and easy to identify. Very large raptor with long, narrow wings and long tail with wedge-shaped tip. Glides along mountain ridges, sometimes quite high. Active flight with deep, slow, soft-looking wingbeats.

Adult

Pale orange-tinged body and head, blackish underwing-coverts, blackish but grey-streaked upperwing-coverts and greyish flight-feathers make this plumage very distinctive. Upperside looks often silvery.

First-year

Dark overall. Almost uniformly black head, paler greyish breast, belly and vent. Upperwing coverts darkish brown, pale buffish areas on mantle. Overall uniform plumage with no moult limits. Has distinctly broader wings and shorter tail than adult.

Subadult

Matures slowly through a series of different plumage aspects. The dark juvenile-like aspect persists for three years, in second year birds the innermost primaries and some secondaries are moulted to shorter and broader-tipped feathers. By the third year, the moult has proceeded leaving only about four outermost primaries and about a half of secondaries are still juvenile. Additionally, there may be some paler feathers on the underbody. At this stage, the overall shape of bird is already resembles adult, as many secondaries are shorter and tail-feathers are longer than in juvenile. In fourth year, some single juvenile wing-feathers may still be present, and the body's appearance starts to resemble adult plumage. After that, for some years, the plumage aspect is still immature, but exact ageing is problematic.

Distribution

Breeds patchily in southern Europe and northern Africa, where migrant, and from Asia Minor to Central Asia, where also migratory. Also Indian subcontinent, where sedentary subspecies gingianus occurs. Also year round in parts of sub-Saharan Africa and parts of Arabia.

Geographical variation

Adult nominate has blackish tip of the bill, in adult gingianus the tip of the bill is pink. The difference is not evident in juveniles - the bill of gingianus becomes gradually paler with increasing age and the tip is the last to become pink. Many 2y gingianus are already identifiable.

Life cycle

Summer breeder, so fresh juveniles appear from late summer. Also most of the moulting occurs from spring to autumn, but this species moult lasts often until December.

General

Small for a vulture, but with long, somewhat pointed wings. A long, slender bill, relatively small head and wedge-shaped tail make this species quite straightforward to identify.

Adult

Whitish underbody with dirty brown patches, white underwing coverts, strongly contrasting black remiges, white tail. In some full adults, all whitish areas of plumage are strongly stained brownish. The upper body and upperwing coverts are white with dirty brown tinge, and the secondaries show large, pale grey areas. Bare, bright yellow face and pink legs.

First-year

Uniformly fresh or, later in spring, worn brown remiges. Body plumage mostly dark brown, with some variable pale buff areas, especially on vent, some upperwing-coverts and uppertail-coverts. Tail paler brown than wings.

Subadult

Second-year birds are still mostly brownish, but they have moulted at least some inner primaries and some secondaries and variable amount of body plumage. The 2g of the body plumage is still clearly immature. Typically bird of this age are quite dark and juvenile-looking, but with vent also dark. The new secondaries show large greyish areas.

Third-year birds normally do not have any juvenile remiges left and after this age the determination of the age has an element of uncertainty. Third-years are typically strongly bicoloured black and white.

Older subadult

The ageing of older subadults is often uncertain. Third-year birds are variable, some are quite brownish and resemble 2y, but typically they are strongly bicoloured black and white.

Fourth-year - type birds are almost like adults but with some brown feathers interspersed among the white areas. Some individuals are not safely separable from 3y. Even older birds may show remnants of immature markings.

Distribution

Lowlands of Indian subcontinent and South-East Asia. The distribution is nowadays very patchy.

Life cycle

Breeds during the northern winter. Mainly sedentary but may wander.

General

The smallest member of the Gyps genus exhibits a relatively large head and a robust bill. Identifying adults is straightforward. The 1y plumage resembles that of the significantly larger Himalayan Griffon. Subadults can occasionally be difficult to identify.

Adult

A distinct plumage characterised by contrasting patterns. It features a predominantly dark reddish or greyish, mostly bare head and neck, along with dull greyish feathers on the hindneck and a white ruff. The underbody is dark, nearly black, with variable streaking, while the underwing-coverts exhibit a striking white area. The upperparts are dark, almost black, but the rump and back shine in pristine white, while the secondaries appear silvery greyish. The bill has a grey hue, with certain areas of the upper mandible reflecting a bluish-grey shine. The legs are mid-grey.

First-year

The neck is pale grey with dark feathering on the hindneck (vs adult, vs 1y Himalayan Griffon). The ruff is brown. The dark plumage, with buff streaking, resembles first-year Himalayan Griffon, but the upperwing coverts are less distinctly streaked and appear more uniformly dark brown, particularly when worn. The streaking on the upperwing coverts and body underparts is approximately similar. The scapulars and mantle show minimal streaking, only occasionally displaying very narrow shaft-streaks (1y Indian Vulture and Himalayan Griffon have those feathers distinctly pale-streaked.) The upper and underwing coverts are darker compared to the Indian and Slender-billed Vultures. The rump and back are dark (vs 1y Indian and Slender-billed Vultures). The flight feathers are uniformly blackish (tips are darker in later plumages). The bill is predominantly black (developing greyer areas as the vulture ages). The legs are grey and do not undergo significant changes with age.

Subadult

During the first moult period, gets new inner primaries, some secondaries and several coverts. In this age head and bill are still very like in first year. The whole plumage is much less neat and uniform than in first year, but general colouration is similar. The 2g remiges have similar colouration to the 1g feathers, but they are less pointed. It takes several years to obtain adult-like bill and neck colouration, blackish coverts and greyish internal areas with black tip to secondaries.

Distribution

Lowlands of Indian subcontinent. The distribution is nowadays very patchy.

Life cycle

Breeds during northern winter and fresh juveniles appear out of nest during the spring. Mainly sedentary but may wander.

General

Also commonly called Long-billed Vulture. Mostly resembles Slender-billed Vulture, which see for comparison, and Eurasian Griffon. Juvenile somewhat similar to White-rumped Vulture juvenile. Compared to Eurasian Griffon and White-rumped Vulture, bill and neck are more slender, and body is more slender compared to Eurasian Griffon, and the wings narrower.

Adult

Dark neck with only scattered pale feathers, mostly on the hindneck (pale and feathered in all plumages of Eurasian Griffon). The overall pale brownish underparts and wing-coverts resemble Eurasian Griffon (central and patagial bars appear more pronounced in Eurasian Griffon). Some are almost unstreaked on the underparts, (Eurasian Griffon normally more distinctly streaked, especially in its Asian range), those that do display streaking, the streaks are longer and less well defined compared to Eurasian Griffon. The ruff is pale, the rump and back are pale (vs Eurasian Griffon which shows rump of similar colour to the wing coverts). Almost uniformly yellowish-horn bill and pale cere contrasting against dark neck (pale neck in Eurasian Griffon). See Slender-billed Vulture for separating that species.

First-year

The neck has whitish feathers overall, with the exception of the face, which has darkish skin visible (1y White-rumped has dark feathering on the hindneck and cap). Distinct pale streaking on the scapulars and mantle (1y White-rumped has those feathers almost unstreaked, with only very small shaft streaks.) The upperwing-coverts are pale and contrasting, with distinct streaking along the shafts with the streaks widening as a pale tip to each feather (adult is not streaked at all, 1y White-rumped Vulture is streaked, but the streaks are much narrower and the whole impression is darker brown). The greater coverts are pointed with a paler shaft streak and, if not worn off, distinct narrow margins (adult type coverts rounder with diffuse darker centre and paler margins). The upperwing coverts will bleach and streaking turns less distinct before the first moult. Dark ruff (adult has pale). The underbody is brown, distinctly streaked pale brownish, the overall colour is not much different to upperwing coverts. The lower underbody is almost uniform pale (1y White-rumped Vulture is similarly streaked but darker ground colour and narrower streaks, giving darker general impression with less contrast to the wing-feathers, and the lower body has similar colour and pattern compared to the breast). The rump and back are very pale (vs 1y White-rumped and any Eurasian Griffon on which the rump is about the same colour as the wing coverts). The bill and cere are blackish with some pale on the culmen.

Subadult

The streaking diminishes in the plumage by succeeding moult periods, the number of the adult-type greater coverts increases and the bill turns paler.

Distribution

Himalaya, Assam, South-East Asia, but the distribution is nowadays very patchy. Sedentary.

Life cycle

Breeds during the northern winter. Mainly sedentary but may wander.

General

Mostly resembles Indian Vulture and is distinguished from the other relatives the same way as that species. Of similar size to Indian, but more slender, long bill and thinner neck, with more visible ear holes. The rear body looks more slender in flight than in Indian. Not too much age-related variation in plumage. The head and neck are almost unfeathered and blackish (some whitish feathering on the neck of adult Indian, whole neck with pale feathers in 1y Indian). The ruff is small, brownish, never whitish (whitish in adult Indian). The underbody is pale buffish with some streaking on the breast and whitish, fluffy trousers with not much long feathers (less contrastingly white in other Gyps) often showing as a white V in flight. Quite pale and contrasting upperwing-coverts (like in Indian) and whitish rump and back (like in Indian, similar to adult White-backed, which is otherwise quite different, and unlike young White-backed and the other species).

Adult

Black bill with clear-cut yellowish on tip (more extensive yellowish in Indian, and adults of all other species too have more extensively pale bills). No feathers on the black neck. The general impression of black, thin, snake-like neck and head.

First-year

Black bill with clear-cut yellowish on tip. Scattered whitish feathers on neck make an almost spotted impression. More streaked on the under and upperparts than adult.

Subadult

During the first moult period, the inner primaries, some secondaries and coverts are moulted. The new secondaries are less pointed than the juvenile ones. The plumage does not change a lot subsequently, and when the last juvenile flight feathers are dropped, exact ageing is not possible.

Distribution

Central Asian mountains to Altai, Himalaya to western Chinese mountains. In winter more to the south and to lowland areas, especially in the northern Indian subcontinent. Quite prominent migration along the Himalaya.

Life cycle

A summer breeder, especially at the north of the range, in the south breeding is likely to start earlier, already in winter. An altitudinal migrant, and short-distance migrant in some areas, but the northernmost birds migrate quite far.

General

The largest Gyps with comparatively small head and thick body. Adults are distinctive in colour but juveniles and younger subadults resemble Eurasian Griffon. Common features with Eurasian are white-feathered head and neck in all age classes and dark bill in juvenile, which turns all pale in full adult. Himalayan is somewhat larger than Eurasian in direct comparison, and thicker-bodied, especially at rear and the head is proportionally smaller. The juvenile plumage is similar also to the juvenile plumage of White-rumped Vulture. Legs are pinkish in all ages (unlike all other Gyps species).

Adult

Easy to identify. Pale neck, the body is variably striped basically like in juvenile, but the bottom colour is much paler, so the pattern is much less contrasting, and almost uniformly whitish underwing-coverts. The upperwing coverts are pale sandy brown except the blackish centres of the greater coverts. The bill and cere are pale. Eyes remain quite dark in adult.

First-year

Neck pale and woolly (vs 1p White-rumped, which has it darker). Darkish brown plumage (paler and warmer fulvous in Eurasian Griffon) with prominent streaking on underbody, streaks may be so wide that overall effect is quite pale (narrower and less contrasting streaks in Eurasian). The pale areas on the underwing coverts are narrower than in Eurasian, especially the central bar is narrower and well defined (in Eurasian, the central bar typically extends to most of the median - greater underwing covert area and is less contrasting). The upperwing coverts are streaked (unstreaked in Eurasian), but streaks are often not visible to larger distances, when the upperparts looks quite dark (paler in Eurasian). Eyes dark, the bill is darkish grey, paler towards the cutting edge.

Subadult

The second plumage aspect is very like the first, because the moult in first year is limited, wear is normally moderate and the new feathers are similar to juvenile ones. 2y birds are aged based on moulted inner primaries and some other feathers, sometimes including median rectrices, but often there are no new secondaries at all. The bill is already extensively pale (unlike Eurasian Griffon of the same age).

3y birds are not necessarily very easy to separate from 2y birds - towards the end of calendar year they may have only moulted - for example - two primaries in the first moult and additional three in the second moult and very few secondaries - they should be seen quite well to be possible to separate from more advanced 2cy birds. Also in older subadult Himalayan, the underparts are typically quite darkish greyish brown with long, contrasting pale brown stripes (in Eurasian it is yellowish brown with narrower and shorter stripes). During the plumage maturation, the pale area on underwing coverts gets larger outwards so at some stage it will be similar to that of Eurasian. In younger Himalayan the patagial bar is almost lacking. (Generally, the central bar is about as distinct as the patagial bar in Eurasian, and it is broad and extensive.) In 2y birds already, but typically later, the patagial bar may be hardly separate from the central bar (then, but not always, different from Eurasian, also in Eurasian the central bar gets more extensive in older subadults, but the patagial bar remains always separable).

Older subadult

The difference in the underpart streaking between the two griffons is not always very big in older subadults, but still the pattern of Himalayan is more contrasting until the bird has largely pale covert areas, making the identification is easy.

Distribution

Breeds patchily in Southern Europe, northern Africa, Asia Minor, Arabia and from Caucasus to Tian Shan and westernmost Pakistan. Some are residents, but during winter occur more widely in Africa, Arabia and many wander to the northern parts of Indian subcontinent.

Life cycle

Summer breeder, but laying variable even in one colony and may start so early that some pairs can be classified as late winter breeders. Sedentary and partly migratory, especially younger birds migrate and may wander widely.

General

Different age classes are more similar to each other than in other regional Gyps species (except Slender-billed Vulture). Always has pale rufescent buff wing-coverts (resembles mostly Indian and Slender-billed Vultures, but more rufescent), variable but quite distinct whitish bars on underwing-coverts and pale woolly head (like Himalayan). The rump is concolorous with the back and mantle (vs all plumages of Slender-billed and Indian Vultures). Himalayan Vulture is the most similar species, see the account of that species for separation.

Adult

AGE: Whitish, woolly ruff. The greater upperwing-coverts with broad, diffuse pale fringes and contrasting dark centres. The greater underwing coverts with blackish centres. Greyish tone on the remiges. Pale yellowish bill with darker cere, yellowish iris. Birds with these characters well developed are normally in their about 9th year or older.

SPECIES: Rufescent body may be quite streaked or almost unstreaked. Asian birds seem to be on average more streaked than European. (In adult Himalayan, the body is much paler, but subadults are more difficult.)

First-year

AGE:Brown ruff, not as woolly as in adult but looser. The greater upperwing coverts with only narrow edges. The greater underwing coverts with paler centres than in adult. Dark grey bill with paler areas close to the cutting edge (like 1y Himalayan), black iris.

SPECIES: Pale brown body and wing coverts contrast strongly against the almost black wing-feathers. On the underparts, the patagial bar is narrow and well defined, the central bar much broader and longer, but often not as well defined (Indian Vulture not that different, but bars normally less well defined and less contrasting against more sandy general colour). The underparts quite uniform fulvous brown with some pale streaking, the vent area only slightly paler (Indian Vulture more sandy coloured with streaking concentrated on breast and the rear parts paler).

Subadult

AGE: The first moult includes 3-4 innermost primaries and less than third of the secondaries, the later moults are somewhat more extensive. The last juvenile primary may be moulted already in the second moult, but some juvenile secondaries may remain until the fourth moult. Individuals which have wintered in tropical conditions have had more extensive moults. When perched, adult type greater coverts replacing juvenile type is a good character of younger immature. The birds with no juvenile type feathers left, some dark on the bill, some dark on the eye and/or brownish tinge on the ruff are older subadults. Dark bill in younger birds, turning pale in adults.

SPECIES: In some state of plumage development subadults may be more difficult to separate from Himalayan. However, more rufescent overall colour, and the underwing coverts have several separate paler areas, the greater underwing coverts darker, almost black (greyish brown at most in Himalayan).

Distribution

Breeds in Spain and very locally in other parts of southern Europe, the mountainous areas of Asia from Turkey through Central Asia to Mongolia and the Himalaya to western China. Some migratory movements to the south and lowlands to winter.

Life cycle

Summer breeder, moults from spring to autumn, the moulting season is long. Resident or mostly short-distance migrant, but may wander widely.

General

A large, dark vulture, resembling a Gyps, but soars with flattish wings. Dark colouration is visible normally to large distances and makes identification often straightforward. The general colouration is like adult Greater Spotted Eagle, but the shape of the bird is very different.

Adult

Largely greyish head and bill. The body plumage is greyish brown and underparts somewhat streaked. Dark brownish upperwing-coverts. During the summer moult, often large pale areas on underwing coverts and belly become visible. The tips of the secondaries are protruding and the trailing edge is serrated (vs other adult vultures, but more rounded than the first set of secondaries of this species).

First-year

Uniform, blackish plumage. The head is mostly black, the underbody and underwing-coverts brownish black contrasting with somewhat paler remiges, on the upperparts the coverts look somewhat paler than the remiges, but still quite dark. The trailing edge of wing is uniformly serrated because of the pointed tips of secondaries.

Subadult

Matures slowly, and the feather pattern does not change too much. Second-year birds have bleached juvenile body feathers left with new ones darker and still quite juvenile-like. The feather generations after that are more brownish. When at least some juvenile remiges are left, and moult contrasts visible, exact ageing is possible.

Distribution

Indian subcontinent and South-East Asia, has declined and distribution is now very patchy.

Life cycle

Sedentary, the breeding season is mostly spring.

General

The same size as the smaller species of Gyps, mostly blackish plumage with clear-cut white areas and red head and reddish legs make this species distinctive. Soars with flat wings or with shallow V.

Adult

Mostly blackish, pale greyish bases to the secondaries and white areas on the rear flanks. Male has pale irises, female dark. Female has pale areas on the rear scapulars.

First-year

Some feathering on the head. The plumage is mostly brownish, but large white flank patches. The secondaries are uniformly brown, more pointed and somewhat longer than in adult.

Subadult

Because the juvenile secondaries have no pale bases, and the first post-juvenile ones have those pale areas not large as in adult, this species is easier to age than some others, as long as there are juvenile secondaries left.