A tall, long-necked scavenger was once widespread across South and Southeast Asia, from India and Nepal through Myanmar and Cambodia. It looks similar to its close relatives, but as its name suggests, it has a noticeably narrower, longer bill than other vultures, giving it a more delicate profile. This slimmer bill is not just for looks—it helps the bird reach into carcasses more precisely, picking through tissues that thicker-billed species cannot manage. Its plumage is mostly dark brown with pale wing coverts, and like many vultures, it has a bald head and neck that reduces mess while feeding. Soaring high on broad wings, it can ride thermal currents for hours, scanning vast landscapes for carcasses. Its finer bill shape and history as a forest and lowland plains specialist set it apart from other vultures.
This species was once common, especially across the floodplains of the Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers. Like the White-rumped vulture, the Slender-billed vulture often lived near villages, farms, and grazing lands, feeding mainly on the carcasses of domestic cattle. They nested in tall trees, sometimes forming loose colonies where pairs built large stick nests. Each pair raised only one chick per season, which meant populations grew slowly even in good times. The combination of their slim beak and slightly more elongated body gave them a different role among the guild of vultures: where the White-rumped vulture was the bulk-cleaner, the Slender-billed vulture was the precision picker, able to reach parts of carcasses that others missed.
Sadly, like its cousin, this vulture suffered one of the fastest population crashes in bird history. In the 1990s and 2000s, numbers plummeted by more than 95%, mainly because of the veterinary drug diclofenac. Cattle treated with this drug left behind toxic carcasses that poisoned the vultures, causing kidney failure.
Distribution
Bangladesh
Cambodia
India
Laos
Malaysia
Official estimate
Myanmar
Nepal
Thailand
Official estimate
VietnamAnything we've missed?
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Terrestrial / Aquatic
Altricial / Precocial
Polygamous / Monogamous
Dimorphic (size) / Monomorphic
Active: Diurnal / Nocturnal
Social behavior: Solitary / Pack / Herd
Diet: Carnivore / Herbivore / Omnivore / Piscivorous / Insectivore
Migratory: Yes / No
Domesticated: Yes / No
Dangerous: Yes / No
