India’s ecosystem has been dramatically disrupted by the plummeting population of its vultures: Stray dogs are now one of the top scavengers, and they are spreading rabies to humans. The new availability of extra food left behind by the dwindling number of vultures is a having a catastrophic effect on India’s ecosystem. It has led to a population explosion in stray dogs, who are reportedly “hunting in packs, thus posing a threat to humans as well as wildlife.” Diseases such […]
Tag: vultures
Vulture Series 2009 (part 1 of 2): India’s Vulture Population has Plummeted from 40 million to 60,000 – Poisoned by Drug Diclofenac
Three species of Gyps vulture are in danger of extinction – poisoned by the use of diclofenac in livestock. India, Nepal, and Pakistan have lost 95% of their vulture populations. As recently as the early 1980’s, there were approximately 40 million vultures in India. However, in the late 1990’s, the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) noticed population declines in a breeding colony of White-backed Vultures in Keoladeo National park, Bharatpur, Rajasthan. By 2000, there were no breeding pairs left. Scientific […]