News
In the news
May 1st 2008
Time is running out for Asian vultures...
A new study has revealed that the vultures of Asia are declining faster than any bird in history. It warns that without urgent action, these scavenging birds will be extinct within just ten years.
These devastating declines have been largely caused by the use of the drug diclofenac, an anti-inflammatory drug for livestock. Vultures that feed on livestock carcasses treated with diclofenac experience kidney failure within just a few days, and with so many vultures gathering to feed on one animal, a single cow carcass can kill a large flock.
The full extent of the decline of vulture species is already being felt by humans, as rotting carcasses remain untouched, posing a health hazard, as well as encouraging feral dog populations which carry rabies.
The manufacture of veterinary diclofenac was banned in 2006, but with the human form of the drug still widely available and used to treat livestock, vulture numbers have continued to fall. The scientists who undertook the study urge that a ban on the sale of diclofenac is vital for survival of three Critically Endangered vulture species...
Asian white-backed vulture
Asian white-backed vultures are voracious feeders; a flock of different vulture species has been reported to eat a fresh bullock carcass in just 40 minutes. This species has experienced catastrophic declines, with population numbers dropping by 99.9 percent since 1992.
Indian vulture
A scruffy-looking scavenger, the Indian vulture constructs enormous nests, measuring two to three feet across. Together with the slender-billed vulture, numbers have fallen by a shocking 97 percent since 1992.
Slender-billed vulture
The slender-billed vulture is not only being pushed towards extinction by human’s continued use of diclofenac, but in some areas is also suffering from a shortage of carcasses on which to feed, caused by a reduction in the numbers of wild animals, and human consumption of livestock that die naturally.
Monday 6th October 2008
2008 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™
Wednesday 3rd September 2008
International partnership takes Wildscreen's work to the United Arab Emirates
Wednesday 27th August 2008
Newly discovered monkey clings to survival
Wednesday 13th August 2008
A whale of a recovery
Friday 8th August 2008
China under the spotlight
Thursday 31st July 2008
New light shed on the ocean depths
Wednesday 23rd July 2008
Half of Philippine fauna nearly extinct
Wednesday 16th July 2008
One third of reef-building corals face extinction
Thursday 10th July 2008
New Natural Wonders added to the World Heritage List
Thursday 3rd July 2008
Rare white-tailed eagle spotted in Northern Ireland
Monday 23rd June 2008
National Insect Week
Friday 13th June 2008
Fishermen help protect Indian Ocean albatrosses
Tuesday 3rd June 2008
The return of Cambodia's wildlife
Thursday 22nd May 2008
International day for biological diversity
Wednesday 14th May 2008
Koalas at risk from climate change
Thursday 1st May 2008
Time is running out for Asian vultures
Tuesday 22nd April 2008
Migrating birds in decline
Friday 11th April 2008
Wildscreen's Patron Sir David Attenborough launches ARKive layer on Google Earth
Tuesday 25th March 2008
WWF reports that Australian wildlife is under pressure
Wednesday 12th March 2008
Tiger numbers 'halve in 25 years'
Tuesday 26th February 2008
South Africa lifts the ban on culling elephants
