The creation of safe zones for vultures in India remains a significant challenge, with the five-year deadline for the species’ conservation plan set to end next year, experts have said as the dwindling population of the scavenger bird poses a critical risk to the ecosystem.
The concern was highlighted by subject matter experts at the National Symposium for Vulture Conservation, 2024, held in Ahmedabad and organised by the Bird Conservation Society of Gujarat.
India’s three Gyps species vulture population, once around 40 million in the 1980s, suffered a drastic 90% decline by the 1990s to about 4 million. Over the next decade, the population further dropped by 99%, reducing the number to approximately 40,000. Further declines over the years have left the current estimated population at around 20,000 vultures. The three species include Long-billed Vulture, White-backed Vulture, and Slender-billed Vulture.
Diclofenac, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) used in livestock, has caused visceral gout in vultures, leading to their catastrophic decline as they frequently feed on livestock carcasses.
In response, the government banned its use in veterinary medicine in 2006 to protect the species from further harm. The presence of diclofenac in dead cattle was shown to decrease after the ban. However, since then, there have been many other NSAID introduced which continue to be toxic to vultures.
Of the 23 species of vultures found in the world, nine are in India and of them four are critically endangered. In July 2015, the Indian government restricted the sale of diclofenac in vials larger than 3ml to prevent the misuse of larger multi-dose vials, which were intended for human use but illegally diverted for veterinary purposes.
To save vultures, the government launched Action Plan for Vulture Conservation in India 2020-2025 which included setting up eight Vulture Conservation Breeding Centres in the country and an equal number of VSZs besides identifying VSZs in all states and covering all the nine species found in India.
In 2023, the government through a gazette notification banned the veterinary use of aceclofenac and ketoprofen which were found to be toxic to vultures.
“There are over 14 NSAIDS available in the market for veterinary use and many of them may be toxic for vultures. Meloxicam and Tolfenamic acid are the only safe drugs to vulture. Nimuesilide, which is available in the market today, has been tested toxic for vultures. An area can be designated a VSZ if, after two years of monitoring, no toxic drugs or signs of visceral gout are found in dead vultures within a 100km radius, and vulture populations are stable or increasing. Alternatively, none of the 50 satellite-tagged, free-ranging vultures should die from NSAID poisoning within one year of their release. Despite identification, no safe zone has been established so far in the country,” according to Dr Vibhu Prakash, who was a member of the task force of the Action Plan for Vulture Conservation in India 2020-25.
The vulture breeding programme, focused on three Gyps species of vultures, aims to have 600 pairs of each of the three species to form a viable population. The first release into the wild was in 2020.
“It looks difficult that even one VSZ of the eight provisional VSZs will be established in the country by 2025. The aim of VSZ is to protect remaining in-situ populations and release sites for captive bred birds until diclofenac and other toxic drugs are removed nationally. Around 50 vultures have been released initially, more releases will only happen when VSZ are established,” Prakash, who retired as deputy of Bombay Natural History Society, told HT on the sidelines of the event.
He said the current vulture population is estimated to be around 20,000, including 13,000 Long-billed Vulture, 6,000 White-backed Vulture, and 1,000 Slender-billed Vulture, he added.
John Mallord, a senior conservationist scientist at the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, UK said that from 2012 to 2024 they undertook covert surveys of pharmacies in India, Nepal and Bangladesh to investigate the availability and prevalence of NSAIDs for the treatment of livestock.
“The availability of diclofenac has declined in all four Vulture Safe Zones in India, although the drug was widely available in other states, including the illegally manufactured (in India) large vials,” Mallord said, adding that Nimesulide was particularly prevalent in India.
Chris Bowden, globally threatened species officer for the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds and Co-chair of the IUCN Vulture Specialist Group, pointed out that while India has the capacity for conservation, the necessary network is still lacking.
Bowden also warned that releasing captive-bred vultures into the wild is premature without VSZs and proper regulations in place.
“New research shows that removing toxic NSAIDs can reverse vulture declines. India should mandate safety testing of NSAIDs on vultures before veterinary use is approved,” he said.
R Sureshkumar who is conducting pan India assessment of vulture population for the Union environment ministry, said that the nesting status of three critically endangered Asian Gyps vultures – the White-backed Vulture, the Slender Billed Vulture and the Indian Vulture – was undertaken from February 2023 and June 2024 and they found that the Indian Vulture had the highest nesting site primarily in Madhya Pradesh, central India.
The White-backed Vultures were widely distributed with substantial nesting sites across various regions, particularly in Kangra valley in Himachal Pradesh. The nesting population of the Slender-Billed Vulture on the contrary was highly critical with all the observations limited to the Sibsagar and Tinsukia districts of Assam.
A significant number of nesting sites for all three species were located outside the protected areas, he said. He added that the information of nesting for the three species forms an important baseline and will be maintained as part of the National Vulture Database being currently developed.