White-backed vulture

Gyps africanus

The White-backed vulture (Gyps africanus) is a bird found in South Africa, Kenya, Tanzania, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, and 2 more countries. Savanna across Africa. It eats dead animals (carrion). The IUCN Red List lists it as Critically Endangered.

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Scientific name	Gyps africanus
Region	Africa
Found in	South Africa, Kenya, Tanzania, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, and 2 more countries

🏡 Where the White-backed vulture lives

Savanna across Africa.

🍽️ What it eats

🦴 Leftovers (carrion)100%

A rough guide to its diet over a year. Source: EltonTraits (Wilman et al. 2014).

Conservation status

LCNTVUENCREWEX

Critically EndangeredAlmost gone from the wild.

💡 It soars high on warm air, looking for animals to eat and clean up.

Hear the White-backed vulture

Recorded by Ehren Eksteen (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0), xeno-canto XC978231. Trimmed to a few seconds.

Questions about the White-backed vulture

Where does the White-backed vulture live?

The White-backed vulture lives in South Africa, Kenya, Tanzania, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, and 2 more countries. Savanna across Africa.

What does the White-backed vulture eat?

dead animals (carrion) (about 100%). These are rough shares of its diet over a year, from the EltonTraits database.

Is the White-backed vulture endangered?

Almost gone from the wild. Its IUCN Red List category is Critically Endangered.

More birds from Africa

Sources: IUCN Red List (via Wikidata), EltonTraits 1.0 (Wilman et al. 2014), GBIF sightings for countries, Wikipedia. Last updated 2026-10-19.