Today is International Vulture Awareness Day, the day when we remember vultures under threat and thank them for saving us from disease.
Originally founded by Birds of Prey Programme in South Africa and the Hawk Conservancy Trust in England this annual event teaches the benefits of vultures and our actions that threaten them.
The most famous vulture crisis happened at the turn of this century when public health officials, conservationists, and birders became alarmed that 95% of the vultures in India, Pakistan and Nepal had died-off in only 15 years. It was the fastest bird decline in history and became painfully obvious when the landscape was swamped by decaying animal carcasses. Research revealed that the solution was rather simple: Ban diclofenac, a painkiller given to cattle that’s deadly to vultures. The drug was banned in 2006 but vulture populations are severely damaged — down 99.9% — perhaps irretrievably.
Vultures in Africa and Europe are declining as well and could face extinction within our lifetime. In Africa the threats are complex; click here to learn more.
If you think our vultures are secure, think again. The largest land bird in North America, the California condor (Gymnogyps californianus), is a vulture and is so critically endangered that they’ve been captive-bred since 1987. Every California condor you see today comes from that program.
And in South America Andean condors are near-threatened. You can see and learn about them at Pittsburgh’s National Aviary.
Thankfully our turkey and black vulture populations are stable, but we often don’t realize the good work they do for us. They usually eat carcasses before we smell them and save us from the diseases harbored in rotting meat. Did you know vultures can eat anthrax safely because their powerful stomachs protect them? Thank you, vultures!
So when you see a vulture today give him a nod and thank him for his efforts.
Happy International Vulture Awareness Day!
(turkey vulture photo by Chuck Tague)
I watch a couple of CaCo cams. Since they only have one chick at a time, and they take so long to fledge, I feel “sorry” for those big lonely babies. But it is funny to watch the parents sometimes “discipline” them when they constantly want food, and as scavengers, often go days between eating. Even in captivity, they are fed irregularly.