There are four ranges to explore in Kaziranga: Eastern, Western, Central and Burapahar. We spent our first morning in Kaziranga at the Eastern Range, a paradise for birdwatchers which for a bird photographer like me is heaven on earth.
There were birds perched on almost every branch throughout the trail!
This himalayan griffon vulture was perched on a branch of a mature tree, directly above the jeep trail—looking straight at us—as if to tell us, “look what you’ve done...left us on the verge of extension!”
Our first safari at the Eastern Range that morning stands as one of my top five wildlife experiences. So I was very eager to visit Kaziranga again.
In October 2017 I called our naturalist in Kaziranga, telling him to keep his dates free for us when we come in December. He tried telling me that perhaps this December will not be the best time to visit Kaziranga National Park. Assam had heavy monsoons in 2017. He was of the opinion that the arrival of migratory birds will be delayed as a result of all the rains.
Still, we went ahead with the trip.
I was excited to explore the Eastern Range again—expecting that this vulture will be waiting for us exactly where we’d last seen it, in 2015.
There wasn’t a bird in sight anywhere!
At the exact same time two years earlier the park was teeming with birds. How unpredictable is nature! Our naturalist was correct, and we should have delayed our trip by a couple of months.
Himalayan griffon vultures typically roost in higher parts of the Himalayan Mountains. So they are less prone to poisoning and dramatic declines as compared to other vulture species in India.
Since 1990, the vulture population in India has declined by over 96%. Nation-wide counts conducted in 2015 estimated that only 6,000 oriental white-backed vultures, 12,000 long-billed vultures, and 1,000 slender-billed vultures out of a total of tens of millions remain.
Vultures perform a vital service to farmers and the ecosystem; they dispose of cattle carcasses. If carcasses are left to rot, infections and diseases spread to animals and humans through flies and maggots that come in contact with the rotting carcass.
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAID) administered to livestock and used to treat inflammation, pain, and fever is believed to be toxic to vultures who feed on carcasses of dead animals treated with NSAID such as diclofenac, aceclofenac, carprofen, flunixin, and ketoprofen etc.
While diclofenac has been banned for veterinary use in India and other countries, other NSAID are still used.