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 The Egyptian Vulture (Neophron percnopterus) is the smallest in the vulture family. It only just measures 40 cm standing and its wingspan reaches just 1m in adults. Amongst raptors, the Egyptian Vulture is considered a first-class scavenger. In fact he is never the last to tuck into a dead animal and he stays with a carcass until the smallest scraps of meat are cleaned from the bones.
Everything that seems like food is on the menu for the Egyptian Vulture, which often leads him to the edge of his habitat in search of a meal. Apart from the unenviable eating preferences, the Egyptian Vulture revels in particular skills to which no other vulture can lay claim to; this makes him the most intelligent of birds of prey. He is capable of collecting stones and dropping them on Ostrich eggs before savouring the contents. Kevin does not have access to Ostrich eggs in Nepal, but he has retained this skill and can grab an egg and drop it on the ground until it breaks.
The Egyptian Vulture¡¯s aerial skills enable it to exploit the weakest of thermals. This makes him a specialist in mountain flying where he outclasses numerous other more prestigious birds such as the Royal Eagle or the Lammergeyer. However, this bird cannot compete on long glides against the Himalayan Griffin Vulture or wild Vultures who are more adept to floating in the air mass.
Studies undertaken in India have shown that the Egyptian Vulture population as well as the other 3 vulture species, has fallen dramatically over the last 10 years. The cause of the decline of more than 100,000 birds is largely due to poisoning from Diclofenac, which is widely used in farming. As a consequence of this, the Egyptian Vulture is now classed as an endangered species in danger of extinction.
 In May 2006, after falling from his nest, a young Egyptian vulture, discovered by a farmer on the outskirts of Pokhara, was delivered to Scott Mason, a British falconer in love with Nepal. In 2001, Scott opened the Maya Devi bird refuge on the banks of lake Pokhara. The young vulture was duly baptised Kevin. Thanks to the painstaking work of Scott, Kevin was quickly taking to the skills of falconry and in particular Parahawking ? the art of flying with birds on a paraglider.
¡°In only 4 weeks of work, Kevin was flying with me and eating from my hand in flight !¡± says Scott, still amazed.
The same results accomplished in previous years with Black Kites required hours of application with many disappointments. Did Scott find a rare bird?
His natural agility, gentle nature and his obvious capacity to handle pressure have allowed Scott to predict and guide the future of parahawking.
¡°Kevin has just tuned 1yr old, and is not even an adult bird yet. His potential is still massive; he recently proved his aerial ability on a flight with experienced pilots who were not experienced falconers. The constraints and disturbance that came with getting the right shots and camera angles in flight didn¡¯t scare him, on the contrary, he seemed super motivated by the added risks encountered. A while after the photo shoot, Kevin and I flew for more than 1 hour together near Bandipur - our record!“ 
Now over to Kevin. As he nears adulthood, sometimes it¡¯s hard to shut him up! You can¡¯t reproach him for keeping his distance being an endangered species.
¡°From October to April we¡¯re in full season. Each day with my adopted father, Scott, a charming human, I perform my almost daily aerobatic show. Oh don¡¯t believe for one moment that I enjoy showing off, but when the beautiful weather arrives and my plumage is resplendent, it¡¯s time to get to work. It¡¯s the only way I can earn my keep and annual lodgings in my own personal cage! Scott collaborates regularly with ¡®Wildlife Conservation Nepal¡¯ who often send him injured birds. Generally these are the poor babies who have fallen from bed, oh sorry, the nest. A stay at Maya Devi is more than just convalescence in a welcome aviary, as Scott always has unusual ideas in the back of his head. In the absence of being able to fly with his own wings, one day he bought a strange flying machine (as only man could invent) called a paraglider. For humans, learning all about the air is not without risk, but Scott learned quickly and the only hiccups for him have been a misjudged landing at Maya Devi which ended in the fresh waters of lake Phewa and a clip into the giant Rhododendrons on the heights of Sarangkot. After 5 years of practice, his technique does conceal a few imperfections but I am now quite happy to fly in his company. I owe brave Scott this at least¡¦and I must say that I am now quite satisfied ? flying with my adopted father pretty much guarantees a full stomach of the best meat around taken from his hand in flight. I don¡¯t need to worry about the source of this nourishment, as I know Scott is very particular about my diet, but sometimes if I find my meal shall we say, on the frugal side, I let temptation guide me to escape for a snack on the side of Lake Phewa. There I can find Carp and other fishy remains near fishermen¡¯s boats. What a feast! Generally, Scott is never usually late in locating my whereabouts thanks to my attached transmitter. The punishment is instant ? 2 days of fasting minimum as usually after such a gluttonous adventure I gain a little surplus weight, which prevents me from taking to the air! You should know that we Vultures must follow a draconian diet to the nearest gram, which enables us to retain our form and health. If we don¡¯t respect these principles then our aerial performances would be ridiculed like that of a vulgar chicken scraping in its coop. Without having the class of a Himalayan Vulture and despite my fine baldness (I am still only 1yr old) people do find me cute! I must also say that my plumage is impeccable since being here at Maya Devi. All those like me who live on the cliffs and in the surrounding area can¡¯t disagree with that. So, with the introduction over it¡¯s now time to move onto more serious matters¡¦
The feats I perform with Scott have nothing to with classic falconry. I¡¯m not one to boast but as a parahawking specialist, I prefer to talk about those things that I know best and let others spread rumours!¹
 When I am asked if I miss my lost freedom, I reply that apart from my fall from the nest, I have nothing to complain about as I get to fly freely every day. However, I think there is a bit of jealousy out there in the local population, as I am sometimes attacked in flight when Scott has his back turned. This is why on arrival at take-off, Scott and James (who is also a falconer) observe the airspace very carefully before we launch. We firstly avoid large tandem gliders and their noisy passengers. Then we check that there aren¡¯t any nutters in the vicinity who might give me the heebie jeebies. During the usual palaver of untangling the lines and preparing the wing I have all the time I want for a touch of self-preening in the sunshine and a stretch of my wings. Wonderful! The stress of crossing Pokhara in a vehicle and the crazy climb and dust to Sarangkot is quickly forgotten. The only thing that remembers this is Scott¡¯s trousers which I ceremonially cover in a sticky white viscous splodge just before leaving the car! I know when take-off is imminent as Scott clips into his karabiners and fills his bag with carefully scissor-cut pieces of meat.
 As soon as Scott is airborne, I am right on his tail. I always wait for the best moment to leave delicately Jame¡¯s arm when a gentle buble is rising from take off. In flight, Scott trails a red piece of material behind him; I quickly spot this when I am confused in the air amongst other gliders and our paths have diverged. When he whistles I don¡¯t waste a moment and dive fiercely towards that delicious piece of red flesh held between his thumb and index finger. Sometimes in the final centimetres nearing this tasty morsel I find the turbulence affects my ¡®approach¡¯ and I regularly catch the lines of his glider. It gets a bit close for comfort sometimes but what counts is that I get my snack and I don¡¯t slip away empty handed into the emptiness. I remember that this exercise on the practice fields (in the early days) was mere child¡¯s play.
After 10 or so morsels my aerial mass has considerably evolved. The energy I accumulate from the short grabs reminds me how much I love accro. It¡¯s difficult to resist these temptations especially when a return to the perch looms.
Scott whistles again and I delight in linking my favourite manoeuvres with him over Maya Devi. I feel re-born!²
Generally it¡¯s an apprentice falconer who has the honour of getting me back to my home. As I¡¯m a bit of a joker, I often extend my final glide to take me to the numerous perches on the nearby rooftops of Maya Devi. One must at least offer me recompense for all my efforts too lure me back to the perch. Not a lot to ask I feel! With my mission accomplished I can finally get back to making myself look beautiful again.³ Fortunately I am not ticklish, as I¡¯m often intercepted by curious people or children from the area, who for quite a while give me lots of attention. I enjoy my caresses like a smug house cat but that¡¯s all part of the life of a star!
 What about the future? Scott skirts around the subject somewhat, but I can read his thoughts. I am aware of the luck I have in being here and I know that the future of the Himalayan Vultures does not look rosy. At the moment, the colonies are affected by a chemical scourge - Diclofenac (see box), a real poison spilled by man.
The risk of poisoning threatens my friends from the cliffs each time they feed on a dead goat or cow carcass. With Scott, I am prepared to fly much further than just around Maya Devi. The distractions that I elicit around Pokhara aren¡¯t an end in themselves. We will probably move past the next stage. This will be the long distance flight, with the goal of visiting nearby village populations. In this way we can alert them of the scourge which threatens the entire Vulture population. Finally, making a film will allow us to reach out to a wider audience and create a proactive reaction with the relevant authorities before the vultures disappear from the Himalayan landscape leaving only a few ¡®show birds¡¯ in refuges and aviaries, here and there.
Jerome Maupoint
To find out more about Parahawking, and to follow the adventures of Scott and Kevin, please visit: - www.parahawking.com
¹ Oh he doesn¡¯t lack confidence this Kevin!
² Does Kevin think he is a Falcon sometimes by taking advantage of the situation to impress the crowds? Oh the youth of today!
³ Don¡¯t worry too much Kevin; your look isn¡¯t that sexy actually. Wait a while until nature gifts you with a more respectable white adult coat. |
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