Vultures

Old World vultures are facing a number of challenges to their existence. Throughout parts of Europe and Asia, long-term changes in livestock management, and the decline of food base have diminished the extent and carrying capacity of habitats to support vultures. Other factors, including changes in land management, persecution, direct and indirect poisoning and trapping, electrocutions, collision with power lines and human disturbance also have helped undermine the stability of vulture populations. Most recently, a drug, Diclofenac has been added to this list of threats, which is linked to a rapid 95 percent decline in the number of several species of "Gyps" vultures in Pakistan and India. Diclofenac, a non- steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, commonly prescribed for arthritis and pain in people, causes acute kidney failure in vultures when they eat the carcasses of animals that have recently been treated with this drug. Experiments show that the amount of diclofenac a vulture might ingest from a carcass could kill it within a few days. In Asia the drug is widely given to livestock probably because it is cheap. For the same reasons, Ibuprofen is commonly used in Georgia though we cannot rule out use of Diclofenac.

Georgia supports a guild of four vulture species such as Bearded Vulture (Gypaetus barbatus), Griffon Vulture (Gyps fulvus), Cinereous Vulture (Aegypius monachus), and Egyptian Vulture (Nephron percnopterus). Of these vultures, Cinereous vulture or Eurasian black vulture is classified as "Near Threatened" globally while Bearded, Griffon and Egyptian Vultures are both listed among some of Europe's most threatened birds on Annex I of the EU Wild Birds Directive 79/409/EEC. They are also listed in Appendix II of the Bern Convention, Bonn Convention and CITES.

To conserve the vultures, since 1994 Georgian Center for the Conservation of Wildlife (GCCW) has been conducting population and ecological studies that include the modeling of habitats, satellite received telemetry, individual tagging, pathogen analysis and the production of educational materials to raise the public's awareness. In 2001, Hawk Mountain Sanctuary partnered with Lexo Gavashelishvili of GCCW and Mike McGrady of Natural Research, Ltd, who have worked together studying vultures in Georgia since 1996. With financial assistance from Hawk Mountain Sanctuary, RSPB and CRDF/GRDF, we fitted 1 Bearded (map, photo), 4 griffon (previous map, final map, photo) and 1 Cinereous (previous map, final map, photo) Vultures with satellite-received transmitters or PTTs (Platform Transmitter Terminal) in Georgia.

Vultures: sentinels of sanitation

Carcasses of dead animals provide an ideal source of various infectious human diseases that include such deadly ones as Anthrax, Rabies and Cholera. The vultures are resistant to the microorganisms that cause Anthrax, Rabies and Cholera, and their digestive system easily destroys the pathogens, thus minimizing the risk of epidemics.

In some countries such as India where the numbers of vultures are dramatically declining, an increase in the cases of Anthrax and Rabies has been reported. The speed and efficiency with which a guild of the vultures consumes carcasses leave a little chance for the epidemics of the diseases. Griffons mainly gorge on soft tissue that includes entrails. Although the rest of the vultures readily eat soft tissue, they do not mind other parts too: Cinereous Vultures eat skin, Bearded Vultures feed on bones and Egyptian Vultures go for feces.

The vultures in the Caucasus are too shy to land at carcasses in areas with increased human disturbance and limited visibility due to terrain irregularity, woodland and buildings. Therefore, carcasses may not always be available to the vultures in spite of high mortality of livestock. To avoid carcass-related epidemics, it's recommended that carcasses and all materials associated with them should be immediately destroyed and the ground should be disinfected. This can be very difficult. The preferred method of destruction is (1) to burn carcasses to ashes or (2) bury them deep (at least 3 m) and cover them with quick lime (Calcium Oxide). However, it would be easier and cheaper to regularly move the carcasses away from human disturbance into purposely-selected open areas and let the vultures do away with them. This is also the quickest natural disposal method. Apart from epidemics control such disposal areas or widely known "vulture restaurants " are valuable for helping the vultures survive, facilitating their research and attracting eco-tourists who will contribute to local economy.