Roots & Shoots Nepal - Andean Condor at Taronga Zoo

98 per cent of the southern Asian Vulture population has been lost in 12 years - the greatest decline of any bird species in the region. 

This dramatic loss has been a result of the illegal use of diclofenac, an anti-inflammatory and analgesic drug that is commonly administered to local livestock – and which inadvertently causes renal failure in vultures that scavenge on dead livestock. 

There is an alternative drug, which does not harm vultures, but it is more expensive. This project, in partnership with the Roots and Shoots environmental youth movement, will educate local farmers about the detrimental impact of diclofenac and subsidise the alternative drug to increase its use.

Vultures are scavengers, which means they eat flesh from animals that have already died. This is an essential service as it disposes of rotting carrion and reduces the risk of diseases being transferred to other species. A New World member of the vulture family – the Andean Condor – is cared for at Taronga Zoo clearly showing the featherless head which evolved to help vultures avoid disease when eating carrion. 

Taronga staff will continue to visit and assist the project so that vultures can play their vital role in the ecosystem in the future.

The Roots and Shoots network connects young people all over the world to help them to identify environmental problems in their communities and take action on them.