In the last 20 years, the South Asian vulture population has gone down by 97 per cent. Even in Nepal, hailed for its work in vulture conservation, they are declining at the average rate of 17 per cent per year. The decline, attributed mainly to poisoning caused by the residue of the veterinary drug Diclofenac in carrion, has been so bad that three of eight vulture species found in Nepal are now critically endangered.
Nepal recently launched a ten-year program titled Saving Asia's Vultures from Extinction (SAVE). The SAVE consortium brings together the Nepal government, NGOs working in wildlife conservation, and organisations in India and the UK to revive the dwindling vulture population.
"It is not possible to protect vultures through the efforts of a single country. A trans-boundary partnership is necessary to put policies in place that will displace Diclofenac across the region," says Hum Gurung, CEO of Bird Conservation Nepal.