Kathmandu, September 2

The ninth International Vulture Awareness Day was marked across the country today by organising various programmes.

According to Bird Conservation Nepal, apart from awareness raising programmes, vulture festivals, cultural events, interactions and rallies were organised to mark the day.

Vulture Conservation Programme Officer at BCN Krishna Prasad Bhusal said celebration of the day helped educate public about the critical role the creature played in maintaining ecological balance.

Every year since 2009, the first Saturday of September is being celebrated as International Vulture Awareness Day in Nepal. Vultures are an ecologically vital group of birds that face a range of threats in many areas that they occur. Populations of many species of vultures are under pressure and some species are facing extinction.

The 13th National Annual Vulture Survey had revealed that the number of white-rumped vulture in Nepal had increased by 36 in a year. BCN said 111 white-rumped vultures were recorded during the survey this year. Their population stood at 75 last year. While 205 white-rumped vultures were found in 2002, their population had declined to 195 in 2003, 141 in 2006, 111 in 2008, 52 in 2009, 66 in 2010, 68 in 2011 and 43 in 2012. Since 2013, the vulture population began to increase and stood at 43 in 2013, 68 in 2014, 75 in 2015 and 111 in 2017.

According to BCN, out of nine species of vultures, five species of vultures in Asia are in grave danger of extinction across the Indian subcontinent. Populations of white-rumped Gyps bengalensis, long-billed G indicus and slender-billed G tenuirostris have declined by more than 99 per cent in India and Pakistan and annual rates of decline appear to be increasing.

Further two more species of vultures, red-headed vulture and Egyptian vulture have rapidly declined in recent years. Due to these declines, all five species are now listed threatened by IUCN - The International Union for Conservation of Nature.

Except Egyptian Vulture, which is listed as endangered, all other four are listed as critically endangered. In Nepal white-rumped vulture population had 91 per cent by 2011.