Banned livestock drug continues to threaten India's vultures, conservationists warn

Conservationists have raised concerns that a livestock drug banned in India because it was pushing vultures to the brink of extinction is still being sold. The drug diclofenac was banned because it led to population crashes in three species of vulture in south Asia with birds dying of kidney failure after feeding on carcasses of cattle treated with the medication. A study led by the RSPB's principal conservation scientist, Richard Cuthbert, found more than one-third of Indian pharmacies are still selling diclofenac, a non-steroid anti-inflammatory drug, which can be used in humans as well as by farmers treating cattle. Some of the diclofenac on sale is formulated for veterinary use and has been manufactured illegally since the ban was brought in by India, Pakistan and Nepal, the research published in the journal Oryx found (PDF). The RSPB said the research, conducted to examine the effectiveness of the banning of the drug in 2006 in India followed by further measures in August 2008, showed that oriental white-backed, long-billed and slender-billed vultures were still at risk. The white-backed vulture has seen its numbers drop by 99.9% since 1992, from millions to 11,000, while populations of the other two species have fallen by 97%. In some good news for the species, the research found there was an increase in use of another drug, meloxicam, which was found in 70% of pharmacies and has similar treatment properties for cattle. Captive breeding centres in India run by the Bombay Natural History Society, with support from the RSPB and the Save campaign, have had their most successful year so far, with 18 birds successfully reared in 2011, almost double the number last year. But Cuthbert said: "The ban is still quite easy to avoid because human formulations are still freely for sale in large vials which are convenient for use on large animals like cattle and clearly not suitable for human use. "Preventing the misuse of human diclofenac for veterinary use remains the main challenge in halting the decline of endangered vultures." Chris Bowden, head of the RSPB's vulture programme, said: "Three species of south Asia's vultures are heading for extinction so we have to act now to save them. "With the latest success of the breeding centres we're more confident than ever that there will be sufficient numbers for reintroduction to the wild as soon as it's safe for them, but until diclofenac stops being produced and sold for veterinary use we cannot guarantee these birds have any future in the wild."