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Eaters of the dead, back to life in Cambodia

Vulture(sm).jpgAsia’s vultures are in trouble, but Cambodia has become a haven for the scavengers. An annual census shows some of the most endangered species are increasing slightly there.

In 2003, researchers figured out the culprit behind a massive die-off of Asian vultures first noticed in the late 1990s: the veterinary drug diclofenac—an antinflamatory painkiller given to cattle. Vultures ingested the drug by eating the carcasses of treated cattle, then died of kidney failure. The scope of the problem is huge. Populations of Asian vulture species are down more than 96% since the early 1990s.

The services provided by vultures were taken for granted until the big birds were gone. Only then did the convenience of having scavenging birds around to clean up large carcasses become evident. A 2008 Ecological Economics paper by Anil Markandya of the University of Bath and his colleagues spelled out the consequences for India. Those rotting carcasses became sources of disaease and food for dogs, which increased in number and potentially led to 50,000 additional rabies deaths over the period 1992 to 2006. The loss was also felt by bone collectors, who were suddenly bereft of picked-clean bones to sell to the fertilizer industry. And for some Parsis, who elevate their dead on “Towers of Silence,” where vultures used to eat them, the loss was cultural as well as logistical.


Diclofenac has been banned in some countries, but change is slow. In Cambodia, however, it is not used at all. In Cambodia, however, it is almost never used [Hugo Rainey, a Wildlife Conservation Society advisor on the vultures says that they have found diclofenac being prescribed “in one shop in the east of the country” in July.] Vultures are wide ranging and don’t respect borders, so diclofenac in nearby countries (along with some hunting) has taken its toll on the populations in the country. But now, conservationists have set up “vulture restaurants” in the plains of the country where the birds can dine on safe cattle carcasses.

This week, a consortium of government agencies and conservation groups, the Cambodia Vulture Conservation Project, announced with glee that their annual census of populations of White-rumped (Gyps bengalensis), Slender-billed (G. Tenuirostris) and Indian (G. indicus) vultures Red-headed vultures (Sarcogyps calvus) [Whoops! Thanks Dr. Rainey] show that the species are stable or even increasingly slightly in the country. Thus conservation groups are hoping the country can act as a refuge, and eventually a source from which the vultures can spread out and repopulate all of Asia after the diclofenac is gone. But don’t stop worrying about vultures just yet. That record high population count? 296 birds, for all three species combined.

Photo information (courtesy Wildlife Conservation Society): This “venue” of vultures (a group of vultures can also be called a “committee” or a “wake”) in this image includes slender billed (l), white-rumped (m), and red-headed vultures (r), all of which have persisted in Cambodia while other vulture populations in Asia have all but vanished.

Credit: Hugh Wright.

Comments

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    Brunet Dominique said:

    Great example for a systemic approach to our understanding of the relationships between science, nature and people: in the case above, chemistry (antinflamatory drug) impact nature ( decrease in vulture population) impact human beings ( loss of cultural and economic habits). More examples should be given to us to read and ponder about.Thank you for the researchers.

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    Jaci van Niekerk said:

    An interesting article, but it looks like this might not be the final version.

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    Karen Nielsen said:

    For interested birders, vulture restaurants in Cambodia can be visited. A local Cambodian NGO (samveasna.org) with sustainable ecotourism practices can arrange tours to the remote villages. Visits to the area benefit the villagers and conservation in Cambodia.

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