Tamil Nadu

Misuse of drug threatens vulture population

PHOTO: M.GOVARTHAN

Promoting conservation: S.Muralidharan, Senior Scientist, Salim Ali Centre for Ornithology and Natural History, addresses participants at a workshop in Sathyamangalam on Saturday. —

SATHYAMANGALAM: Environmentalists have expressed concern over the easy availability of the anti-inflammatory drug ‘diclofenac’, the misuse of it on animals, and its impact on vulture population.

“The drug, easily available across the counter, is misused to treat animals, which when dead carry the residue. And, when vultures consume the carcass with residue, even in small doses, their renal system gets affected to the extent that the birds die,” said S. Muralidharan, Senior Scientist, Salim Ali Centre for Ornithology and Natural History, Coimbatore.

He along with other scientists was here on Friday to participate in the workshop on ‘Aftermath of diclofenac and its effect on vulture population’, organised jointly by the Sathyamangalam Forest Division, Wildlife Trust of India, WWF-India and Sudar Environmental Organisation.

Dr. Muralidharan said when vultures consumed the carcass with residues of ‘diclofenac’ their renal system got affected, which lead to formation or uric acid crystals in the birds’ viscera and that ultimately killed them.

He added that the problem of the birds consuming carcass with ‘diclofenac’ was not just confined to the region but was all over India, which had seen a drastic reduction in the population.

“There has been a 95 per cent reduction in the bird’s population in the last six years.” However, he declined to give a number saying it was not possible.

That apart, the environmentalists have another concern: that of the easy availability of the drug across the counter.

They said ‘diclofenac’ was a Schedule H drug in that pharmacists could not sell the drug without prescription.

However, pharmacy stores sold the drug without prescription, which a few people misused to treat animals.

C. Sashikumar of Malabar Natural History Society, Calicut, said he was able to easily get ‘diclofenac’ in and around Sathyamangalam.

B. Senthilmurugan, biologist, Coimbatore Forest Division, said of the nine vulture species in South Asia, three were endangered.

He said ‘white rumped’, ‘long billed’ and ‘slender billed’ were the endangered species and added that in the days to come two more species – ‘Egyptian’ and ‘king vulture’ - would join the list.

S. Chandrasekaran, an avid bird watcher, said Sathyamangalam forest division covered a strategic forest area in that it connected the western and eastern ghats - important for migratory animals.

He said a few places in the forest division were natural breeding places for the birds and that the need of the hour was to conserve the places, so that nature would take its course to restore the vulture population.

He added that if the places were kept free of disturbance, there would be no need for captive breeding of the birds.

Divisional Forest Officer S. Ramasubramanian coordinated the event. S.C. Nataraj of Sudar was also present.

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