Richard Alleyne, The Telegraph 5 Aug 09;
The slender-billed vulture, which is even more threatened than the tiger in India, is one of several Asian species of the carrion-eating bird which has seen dramatic declines in numbers in recent years and are now critically endangered.
Their numbers have been devastated in the last two decades. There are just 1,000 slender-billed vultures left in the wild, the RSPB said. and along with the long-billed vulture, has suffered declines of almost 97 per cent since 1992. The vultures have been hit by the use of the veterinarian drug Diclofenac which gives them kidney failure when they eat the carcases of livestock that have died within a few days of being treated with the medication.
A captive breeding scheme in India, run by a coalition of conservation groups including the RSPB and the Zoological Society of London, has seen the successful hatching and fledging of two slender-billed vultures for the first time this year.
Last year the dedicated breeding centres managed to rear Oriental white-backed vultures for the first time, and repeated their success this year with three youngsters of the species.
There is also hope the long-billed vulture may breed in captivity next year.
The RSPB said that captive breeding would be key to preserving the vulture species, which could be extinct within a decade because of the problem of Diclofenac, used to reduce inflammation.
Chris Bowden, who is in charge of the RSPB's Asian vulture programme, said the news of the successful rearing of the chicks was a huge boost to efforts to fight their declines.
"It is clear we are refining our expertise, but with extinction in the wild likely in the next 10 years, we do not have a moment to waste.
"The more vultures that we can bring into captivity means a better chance of survival for these rapidly-declining species.
"Birds can only be saved from extinction through banning the retail sale of Diclofenac, promotion of the safe alternative, Meloxicam, and the capture of more birds for the breeding programme."
The RSPB said veterinary formulations of Diclofenac had been banned in India since 2006 but more steps were needed to prevent versions of the medication being illegally given to livestock.
Boost for endangered vultures after captive breeding success
Two slender-billed vultures born in RSPB breeding programme in India as wild population heads towards extinction
Press Association, guardian.co.uk 6 Aug 09;
One of the world's most threatened birds has been successfully bred in captivity for the first time, conservationists said today.
The slender-billed vulture, which is even more threatened than the tiger in India, is one of several Asian species of the carrion-eating bird which has seen dramatic declines in numbers in recent years and are now critically endangered. There are just 1,000 slender-billed vultures left in the wild, according to the RSPB.
Conservationists say successfully breeding one of the birds in captivity is a "huge boost" to efforts to prevent it becoming extinct in the wild.
The slender-billed vulture and another species, the long-billed vulture, have together suffered declines of almost 97% since 1992.
The population of a third of critically endangered species, the oriental white-backed vulture, is halving each year and is heading towards extinction even more quickly than the dodo.
The vultures have been hit by the use of the veterinarian drug Diclofenac which gives them kidney failure when they eat the carcasses of livestock that have died within a few days of being treated with the medication.
A captive breeding scheme in India, run by a coalition of conservation groups including the RSPB and the Zoological Society of London, has seen the successful hatching and fledging of two slender-billed vultures for the first time this year.
Last year, the dedicated breeding centres managed to rear Oriental white-backed vultures for the first time, and repeated their success this year with three chicks.
"It is clear we are refining our expertise, but with extinction in the wild likely in the next 10 years, we do not have a moment to waste," said Chris Bowden, who is in charge of the RSPB's Asian vulture programme.
"The more vultures that we can bring into captivity means a better chance of survival for these rapidly-declining species. Birds can only be saved from extinction through banning the retail sale of Diclofenac, promotion of the safe alternative, Meloxicam, and the capture of more birds for the breeding programme."
The RSPB said veterinary formulations of Diclofenac had been banned in India since 2006 and efforts to take it out of use there and in Nepal were taking effect.
But more steps were needed to prevent versions of the medication which are being illegally given to livestock, and introduce the safe alternative Meloxicam.
Indian vulture births are hailed
BBC News 7 Aug 09;
Conservationists say they are delighted at the news that one of the world's most endangered birds has twice been successfully bred in India.
Two slender billed vultures, which experts say are rarer and more endangered than the tiger, are being reared in Haryana and West Bengal.
Officials say that the chicks were born separately are both in good health.
It is believed the vultures' catastrophic decline has been driven by veterinary medicines.
A decade ago, vultures could be counted in their millions in the wild in India.
But now experts estimate there are only around a 1,000 slender-billed vultures left, with similar declines in other species.
They say it is a a population catastrophe exacerbated by medicine.
A veterinary drug called Diclofenac is fatal to the vultures that feed off the livestock carcasses.
Although it has been banned since 2006, experts say it is still in use.
The BBC's environment correspondent Sarah Mukherjee says that the dramatic decline of vultures has had several effects including an increase in rabies-carrying feral dogs that feed on the carrion the vultures once ate.
The Parsi community in Mumbai (Bombay), who leave their dead to be consumed by vultures, have had to find alternative methods following the dramatic decline of the birds.
The Birdlife International campaigning group says that while the captive births are good news, urgent action is still needed to save vultures from extinction in the wild.
"With extinction in the wild likely in the next 10 years, we do not have a moment to waste. The more vultures that we can bring into captivity means a better chance of survival for these rapidly-declining species," Birdlife International spokesman Chris Bowden said.
"Birds can only be saved from extinction through banning the retail sale of Diclofenac, promotion of the safe alternative, Meloxicam, and the capture of more birds for the breeding programme."