NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Slender-billed Vulture
Gyps tenuirostris G. R. Gray, 1844
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The slender-billed vulture (Gyps tenuirostris) is an Old World vulture species native to sub-Himalayan regions and Southeast Asia. It is Critically Endangered since 2002 as the population on the Indian subcontinent has declined rapidly. As of 2021, fewer than 870 mature individuals are thought to remain.
It used to be the Indian vulture, under the name of "long-billed vulture". However, these two species have non-overlapping distribution ranges and can be immediately told apart by trained observers, even at considerable distances. The Indian vulture is found only to the south of the Ganges and breeds on cliffs while the slender-billed vulture is found along and nests in trees.
Wikipedia contributors, Slender-billed vulture; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T07:55:01.615390+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Gyps tenuirostris G. R. Gray, 1844
- Name authority
- G. R. Gray, 1844
- Common name
- Slender-billed Vulture
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Accipitriformes
- Family
- Accipitridae
- Genus
- Gyps
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classAves
- orderAccipitriformes
- familyAccipitridae Vigors, 1824
- genusGyps Savigny, 1809
- speciesGyps tenuirostris G. R. Gray, 1844
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Gyps. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| White-backed VultureGyps africanus Salvadori, 1865 | AccipitridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Griffon VultureGyps fulvus (Hablizl, 1783) | AccipitridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Himalayan VultureGyps himalayensis Hume, 1869 | AccipitridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Rüppell's VultureGyps rueppelli (A. E. Brehm, 1852) | AccipitridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Indian VultureGyps indicus (Scopoli, 1786) | AccipitridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Cape VultureGyps coprotheres (J. R. Forster, 1798) | AccipitridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- Gray, & George Robert. (1844). The Genera of Birds: Comprising Their Generic Differences, a Notice of the Habits of Each Genus and an Extensive List of Species Referred to Their Several Genera, Vol. 1, Part 2. Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:3HXNG. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.