Division of Ecotoxicology, Sálim Ali Centre for Ornithology and Natural History, Coimbatore, 641108, India.
Department of Chemistry, PSG College of Arts and Science, Coimbatore, 641 014, India.
Arch Environ Contam Toxicol. 2018 Feb;74(2):292-297. doi: 10.1007/s00244-017-0480-z. Epub 2017 Nov 20.
Populations of three resident Gyps species (Indian white-backed vulture Gyps bengalensis, Indian vulture Gyps indicus, and Slender-billed vulture Gyps tenuirostris) in India have decreased by more than 90% since mid 1990s, and they continue to decline. Experimental studies showed the mortality of vultures to be due to renal failure caused by diclofenac, a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug. India, Pakistan, and Nepal banned the veterinary usage of diclofenac in 2006 to prevent further decline in vulture population. This study was performed to know the current status of the impact of diclofenac on vultures in India. Between 2011 and 2014, 44 vultures comprising two species, namely Indian white-backed vulture (32) and Himalayan griffon Gyps himalayensis (12) were collected dead from Gujarat, Assam, and Tamil Nadu on an opportunistic basis. Kidney and liver tissues and gut content were analysed for diclofenac. Of the 32 dead white-backed vultures analysed, 68.75% of them had diclofenac ranging from 62.28 to 272.20 ng/g. Fourteen white-backed vultures had diclofenac in kidney in toxic range (70-908 ng/g). Of 12 Himalayan griffon studied, 75% of them had diclofenac in the range of 139.69 to 411.73 ng/g. Himalayan griffon had significantly higher levels of diclofenac in tissues than Indian white-backed vultures. It is possible that 14 of 29 white-backed vultures and 9 of 12 Himalayan griffon included in this study died due to diclofenac poisoning. Studies have indicated that diclofenac can continue to kill vultures even after its ban in India for veterinary use.
自 20 世纪 90 年代中期以来，印度三种本地 Gyps 物种（印度白背秃鹫 Gyps bengalensis、印度秃鹫 Gyps indicus 和 细嘴秃鹫 Gyps tenuirostris）的数量减少了 90%以上，并且仍在持续减少。实验研究表明，秃鹫的死亡是由于双氯芬酸（一种非甾体抗炎药）引起的肾功能衰竭。印度、巴基斯坦和尼泊尔于 2006 年禁止兽医使用双氯芬酸，以防止秃鹫数量进一步减少。本研究旨在了解双氯芬酸对印度秃鹫的影响现状。2011 年至 2014 年，在古吉拉特邦、阿萨姆邦和泰米尔纳德邦，以机会性方式收集了 44 只死亡秃鹫，包括两种，即印度白背秃鹫（32 只）和喜马拉雅神鹰 Gyps himalayensis（12 只）。对秃鹫的肾脏和肝脏组织以及肠道内容物进行了双氯芬酸分析。在分析的 32 只死亡白背秃鹫中，68.75%的白背秃鹫体内双氯芬酸含量在 62.28 至 272.20 纳克/克之间。有 14 只白背秃鹫的肾脏中双氯芬酸含量处于有毒范围（70-908 纳克/克）。在研究的 12 只喜马拉雅神鹰中，75%的神鹰体内双氯芬酸含量在 139.69 至 411.73 纳克/克之间。喜马拉雅神鹰体内的双氯芬酸含量明显高于印度白背秃鹫。本研究中包含的 29 只白背秃鹫中有 14 只和 12 只喜马拉雅神鹰中有 9 只可能因双氯芬酸中毒而死亡。研究表明，即使在印度禁止兽医使用双氯芬酸后，双氯芬酸仍可能继续杀死秃鹫。
