Study finds scope to display vulture species in stamps

Mumbai: India has nine species of vultures but only one of the species is displayed on our postage stamp while eight vulture species from India are used on the stamps by 83 countries and the United Nations.

The vulture’s portrait, life-history stages and habitats could be seen on these stamps.

Vulture as a character ‘Jatayu’ in Ramayana and artefacts with vulture symbols in other ancient cultures were also presented on the stamps. Publishing vulture images on stamps would spread awareness about these wonderful birds among common people of India and would grab the attention of stamp collectors all over the world, according to a study by Sachin Ranade of Mumbai-headquartered Bombay Natural History Society, who works on vulture conservation and Dr Ajit Vartak of Pune-based Maharashtra Vruksh Samvardhini, an avid philatelist and geologist.

The research - ‘Vulture Species from India in the Global Stamp Collections’ was published in Indian Forester.

“India has nine species of vultures, out of which only one species has been depicted on the Indian postage stamp. In the globe, 83 countries and the United Nations have published 204 stamps during 1954 to 2020 which were showcasing the vulture species found in India,” the study said.

Mongolia has published the maximum number of stamps on vultures (11) followed by Mozambique (8), Romania (7) and Yugoslavia (7). A few more countries like Bulgaria, Spain, Togo (each 6) and Guinea Bissau,

Sao Tome, Uganda (each 5) are worth mentioning in the list for their efforts.

“Eight vulture species in India are endangered due to anthropogenic activities and philately could be used as a tool to popularise those, supporting their conservation,” the study states.

The Indian culture valued vultures, the character ‘Jatayu’ in the epic Ramayana was a vulture. Interestingly, stamps on Jatayu were published by Laos in 1969, Indonesia in 1962 and 2018 and India in 2017.

The authors propose that the postal departments of India as well as other countries should publish even more stamps and covers on vultures.

The vulture species of India are - Long-billed vulture (Gyps indicus), White-backed vulture (Gyps bengalensis), Slender-billed vulture (Gyps tenuirostris), Himalayan Griffon vulture (Gyps himalayensis), Bearded vulture (Gypaetus barbatus), King vulture (Sarcogyps calvus), Egyptian vulture (Neophron percnopterus), Cinereous vulture (Aegypius monachus) and Eurasian Griffon vulture (Gyps fulvus).

The BNHS is playing a lead role in vulture conservation in India.