Vultures dying at alarming rate
Thursday, November 17, 2011 - 19:00
in Biology & Nature
Vultures in South Asia were on the brink of extinction until Lindsay Oaks and Richard Watson, from The Peregrine Fund in the US, undertook observational and forensic studies to find out why the number of birds was falling so rapidly. They discovered the vultures were being poisoned by residues of an anti-inflammatory drug (diclofenac) used in cattle and other livestock, whose carcasses they feed on. The work is presented in a chapter of the new book, 'Wildlife Ecotoxicology - Forensic Approaches,' published by Springer.