Thiruvananthapuram: A Himalayan Griffon was spotted in Wayanad wildlife sanctuary towards the end of February. However, the news was so unbelievable that seasoned bird watchers chose to ignore it. For, this is a bird found in the upper Himalayas, and the farthest it normally travels is to the plains.
What’s more, it was captured in the grainy pixels of a camera trap, installed by WWF which works in the sanctuary on a project related to tigers and elephants.
“We saw some birders sharing photos on social networking sites, but did not believe it was a Griffon,” says C. Sushant, founder-member of Warblers and Waders.
But C.K. Vishnu Das, an ornithologist at National Centre for Biological Sciences, Bengaluru, confirms that it was indeed the giant raptor. “It is thrice the size of a white-rumped vulture. WWF volunteers and forest officials, who first saw the photo, wanted to be certain if it was not a Eurasian Griffon. But we have consulted with other experts and are now sure that it was indeed a Himalayan Griffon,” he says.
Over three days, it was seen feasting on an elephant carcass. Officials are not sure whether it has left the sanctuary. In early February, a Himalayan Griffon was spotted by birders at Goa bird conservation network - the first sighting of the bird in Goa. The organisation’s secretary Rajeev D’Silva says, “the bird spotted in Wayanad could be the same individual we saw.”
In 2013 in Thrissur, a juvenile Himalayan Griffon was spotted, according to Vishnu Das. Years ago, a juvenile cinereous vulture had similarly strayed and was rescued in Pathanamthitta by the forest and wildlife department in 1988. It turned out that the vulture was blind and could not find its way back. It is now in the Thiruvananthapuram zoo.
