India’s first vulture conservation portal launched in Assam

An Assam-based foundation working on vulture conservation has developed a portal – reportedly the first of its kind in India – to build a network of individuals engaged in saving the large scavenger birds.

A group of organisations led by We Foundation India launched the portal, (http://www.thevulturenetwork.org), on Tuesday (September 2, 2025) in collaboration with Gauhati University’s Department of Zoology.

The event brought together conservationists, researchers, scientists, academicians, and students to discuss the status of vultures in India and the measures needed for their survival.

“We organised the event ahead of International Vulture Awareness Day, which is observed every year on the first Saturday of September to highlight the importance of vultures and the urgent need for their conservation,” Nilutpal Mahanta of We Foundation India said after delivering a lecture on the vulture crisis and conservation needs.

He said the focus of the portal was on disseminating information in local languages, beginning with Assamese, to ensure that people at the grassroots understood how vulture survival was linked to their lives and the local economy.

“The Vulture Network is a cloud-based portal designed to serve as a comprehensive knowledge and awareness platform on vultures of India. It was developed to compile scientific information, spread awareness, and provide freely downloadable outreach materials for anyone interested in conducting awareness campaigns,” Dr. Mahanta said.

We Foundation’s partners in The Vulture Network include the Assam Bird Monitoring Network, LASA Foundation, Suraksha Samitee, and individual researchers and conservationists.

The launch focused on the threats of carcass poisoning, harmful veterinary drugs such as diclofenac, and negative social perceptions, all of which continue to drive vulture population decline.

Special emphasis was laid on the slender-billed vulture, which has only about 800 mature individuals left. The other eight species of scavenger birds in India are the white-rumped vulture, red-headed vulture, Himalayan griffon, Indian vulture, cinereous vulture, Eurasian griffon, Egyptian vulture, and bearded vulture.

Among the dignitaries who attended and presented were Deputy Conservator of Forest Rohini Ballav Saikia, Assam State Biodiversity Board scientific officer Oinam Sunanda Devi, and zoologists Prasanta K. Saikia, Dandadhar Sarma, Narayan Sarma, Malabika K. Saikia, Kuladip Sarma, and Sageeta Das.

Rupam Bhaduri from the Assam Bird Monitoring Network underlined the need to integrate citizen science into the conservation of vultures and other critically endangered species.