🌱 Environment & EcologyUPSC 2012Sustainable Development

Vultures which used to be very common in Indian countryside some years ago are rarely seen nowadays. This is attributed to:

athe destruction of their nesting sites by new invasive species
ba drug used by cattle owners for treating their discased cattle
cscarcity of food available to them
da widespread, persistent and fatal disease among them
✓ Correct answer: b) a drug used by cattle owners for treating their discased cattle
ExplanationThe drastic decline in the vulture population in India is primarily attributed to the use of a veterinary drug called di- clofenac.This drug was commonly administered to cattle to treat inflammation and pain.However, when vultures fed on the car- casses of cattle that had been treated with diclofenac, they suf- fered from kidney failure and fatal toxicity, leading to a sharp decline in their population.228

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