2024 Vol. 30 No.2 PP 361-366
https://doi.org/10.33451/florafauna.v30i2pp361-366
Breeding success status of the ‘critically endangered’ Indian vulture (Gyps indicus) in selective microhabitats of Southern Rajasthan, India
*Narayan Lal Choudhary, Nadim Chishty
1 and Anil Kumar Sharma
2
1 *ICAR-Indian Institute of Sugarcane Research,
LUCKNOW (UP) INDIA 226 001
..
Department of Zoology,
Adarsh Mahavidhyalaya (Affiliated to Jai Narain Vyas University)
JODHPUR-342008 (RAJASTHAN), INDIA.
1Wildlife, Limnology and Toxicology Research Laboratory,
Department of Zoology,
Government Meera Girls College (Affiliated to Mohan Lal Sukhadia University)
UDAIPUR-313001 (RAJASTHAN), INDIA.
2Department of Zoology,
Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar Govt PG College,
NIMBAHERA, CHITTORGARH-312601 (RAJASTHAN), INDIA
*Corresponding Author
E-mail- narayanlalchoudhary1995@gmail.com
ABSTRACT
Present study was carried out in two different microhabitats for of Indian vulture (Gyps indicus) nesting colonies,
viz.,Kailashpuri village of Udaipur district and Chittorgarh fort of Chittorgarh district, from September 2020 to June 2024. Road
transect surveys in various regions of Southern Rajasthan identified breeding sites, along with the presence of vulture guano or
excreta droplets on rocky cliff areas.Every week, we visited both sites to evaluate the hatchling success rates of the Indian
vultures, using binoculars and long-distance zooming cameras for observations and photographs of various breeding
parameters.We found that all vultures nest on rocky cliffs, as well as historical monuments of Chittorgarh Fort. The Indian
vulture’s breeding season spans from October to April or May.Indian vultures lay on one egg per year or every breeding season
and several times also utilized old nests for the nesting. Several observations were made for breeding aspects, including active
or occupied nests, nests with incubating positions or eggs, nests containing hatchlings, and the nestling stage; the number of
fledglings in the entire nesting colony; and finally determined the hatchling success rate in different years.In Kailashpuri village
nesting colonies, hatchling success ranged between 42.85% to 83.33%, while in the Chittorgarh Fort area, hatchling success
ranged between 60% to 66.66%. The number of active nests and hatchling success rate vary from year to year and vulture
colony to colony. The spatial-temporal variation of Indian vultures influences their hatchling success rate. During breeding
seasons, the presence of adult vulture individuals in particular nestling colonies may cause variations in hatchling success rate.
We also observed juvenile and adult Indian vulture mortality in both nesting colonies.
KEY WORDS : Breeding, Hatchling success, Indian vulture, Nest, Southern Rajasthan.