Vultures: Environment's Unsung Heroes

Copy rights Fatima Arif

 The opening page of Arundhati Roy’s much awaited and extensively reviewed latest novel, The Ministry of Utmost Happiness has the following lines:

“...white backed vultures, custodians of the dead for more than a hundred million years, have been wiped out.

Not many noticed the passing of the friendly old birds. There was so much else to look forward to.”

Indeed not many noticed the passing of these birds in our part of the world. In fact given all the negative connotations attached to them, many considered it good riddance. The state of these birds is sort of a symbolic representation of how humans in their superiority complex, create an environment that stimulates the cycle of their own troubles.

A linguistics tragedy occurs for those working in conservation every time lines like ‘human faced vultures’ and ‘acting like vultures’ are used to convey spiteful traits in someone. It is ironic that these notions define birds that by design act as our environment’s unsung heroes.

Vultures are ecologically important because they consume dead animals and clean the environment. The white backed vulture (Gyps bengalensis), the specific species that Roy refers to in the opening page, once commonly occurred in plains and hilly regions and was regarded as the most common vulture species in the Indian subcontinent. It was frequently spotted in Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Nepal, as well as Bhutan, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and southern Vietnam.

The population of the white-backed vulture has declined by up to 95 % in Pakistan, India and Nepal since the early 1990s, and it is now classified as critically endangered - just one step away from becoming extinct.

The decline of the white backed vulture is regarded as an un-precedent for any bird species.

Cause of this destruction?

Diclofenac Sodium, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID), and other drugs like Ketoprofen and Aceclofenac used in livestock, are the main cause of mortality, causing kidney failure in vultures.

Vultures in Pakistan:

Pakistan is home to eight species of vultures. Two of these species, the white-backed vulture and the long-billed vulture are critically endangered. The white-backed vultures population in the wild is now limited to Nagar Parker and Azad Jammu and Kashmir, while the long-billed vultures stronghold in the country is Nagar Parkar only.

Contrary to myths:

Vultures are social birds. In the good old days, they were known to gather by the hundreds and thousands to roost. Their social life is not limited to their own sub-species but extends to other vulture species as well. They are found in forest trees lining rivers and in big trees around the proximity of towns and villages. Contrary to local myths, vultures are well adapted to live cordially in close proximity of humans.

We Are Connected To The Ghost Of The Mountains

The mountains fascinate me; have always done so, as long as I remember. They have an aura of holding hidden treasures and untold stories to them. One such iconic treasure of the Central and South Asian mountains is the majestic snow leopard – and its story is troubling.

Known as the ‘ghost of the mountains’, the snow leopard is rarely seen by humans. One reason being that they are solitary, shy and elusive in nature. Their movements are often largely dictated by the human presence in their range, focused on either avoiding encountering people or directed towards their hunt. Another key reason for a lack of interaction is the fact that the altitude at which this big cat is most comfortable, is where people in general need assistance in breathing. Recent research has shown that the snow leopards have a special physiological adaptation to survive in low oxygen environments.

Despite these barriers, human activities have had a negative impact on this species, to the extent that they are now in crisis. They are listed as endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List.

A single snow leopard’s home range is of a few hundred square kilometers. There are only some 4,000 of them left in the wild, who claim a combined range of twelve countries (Pakistan, India, China, Afghanistan, Mongolia, Bhutan, Nepal, Russia, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyz Republic and Kazakhstan) their home. Out of these 4,000, between 200 and 400 are found in Pakistan’s northern mountains of Karakorum and Hindu Kush mountain ranges.

The home of the ‘ghost of the mountains’ is shrinking and if it continues at this pace, it is feared one-third of their habitat will become unsustainable. This loss is bad news for homo-sapiens too. Snow leopards play a vital role as a top predator and as an indicator species. Its healthy population is a definite indicator of vibrant and healthy high altitude ecosystems; which translates into a thriving population of other species and millions of people who depend on their survival on the rivers flowing down from these mountains.

Before you dismiss the gravity of the situation, a polite reminder that we humans can only survive for three days without water!