New Delhi, Feb 16 (PTI) A rare Egyptian vulture was found suffering from serious injuries, suspected to have been sustained from ‘manjha’ thread, on the premises of a police station here, after which the bird was rescued, a wildlife NGO said on Wednesday.
The avian creature was found at barrack No 2 of police station at Kalyanpuri, it said.
The staff there spotted the injured vulture on their premises on Tuesday, Wildlife SOS said in a statement.
The frail bird was found hanging from a tree with a “critically-injured left wing”. Taking prompt action, police personnel immediately contacted the Wildlife SOS team, it said.
Identified as a rare Egyptian vulture in its juvenile stages, the bird was carefully transferred into a transportation carrier and rushed to a recovery facility where it continues to be under medical observation, the statement said.
It is suspected that the bird had fallen victim to the deadly ‘manjha’, a glass-coated string used for flying kites.
The vulture was rescued and is currently under medical observation, it added.
Wasim Akram, deputy director, Special Projects for Wildlife SOS, said, “Juvenile Egyptian vultures take small flights, often stopping for rest in safe areas devoid of predators. This particular vulture was a juvenile and was unable to take flight as it injured its wing, most probably due to being caught in a ‘manjha’.” Earlier this month, Wildlife SOS had rescued another Egyptian vulture that was found in a semi-conscious state outside a house in Sector 26 in Noida, it said.
The Egyptian vulture is an old-world vulture widely distributed in India, the Iberian Peninsula, and North Africa. These majestic birds are useful scavengers and play an integral role in the ecosystem by feeding on carrion and disposing carcasses of dead animals, thereby preventing the spread of infectious diseases, the NGO said Despite their importance, the Egyptian vulture population is “slowly declining” due to various anthropogenic pressures, such as habitat loss. The Egyptian vulture is listed as an endangered species on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List, it added. PTI KND AAR AAR
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