Namaste!

The Asian Vultures Crisis, as it came to be known, is one of the most compelling stories in wildlife conservation. Vultures in South Asia were dying off by the thousands and entire populations were plummeting. Finally, it was proven that a drug called Diclofenac, widely used to treat cattle and other livestock at the end of the last century, was inadvertently causing the death of these vultures. The Peregrine Fund solved the mystery and now the drug is banned in India, Nepal and Pakistan. To this day, The Peregrine Fund keeps monitoring the vulture populations in India.

Since I first learned about this project, I always dreamed of being involved with it, somewhere, somehow. Last November I was very fortunate to accompany Patrick Benson and Munir Virani in one of their trips to India.

Overall, it was a very intense trip, full of amazing experiences and sensations. It is difficult to say which were the best moments: floating down the Chambal River; discovering the beauty of Ranthambhore; seeing the vultures nesting in the palaces of Orchha; living the excitement of seeing my first tiger and my first Pallas's Fish Eagle; spending the night in the Jhansi train station; walking through the enormous dumps in Bikaner and Jaipur where we saw thousands of raptors; and the food... the food was just fantastic. It was a phenomenal experience overall and I was very lucky to be in the company of some wonderful people. I owe a big thanks to Munir, Pat, Pranay and Teeku for their company and friendship.

I'm posting a selection of pictures from this trip, hoping to give a glimpse of the excitement of working in such a lively and beautiful country.

I'd like to humbly dedicate this post to the memory of Lindsay Oaks, who recently passed away. I never met him, but he surely is a source of inspiration for a wildlife vet like me.

Editor's note:Lindsay Oaks was a close collaborator and long-time friend of The Peregrine Fund's, first getting involved as a teenager in the 1970s with the captive breeding and restoration of endangered Peregrine Falcons. He subsequently qualified as a veterinarian and specialized in avian virology. He played an important role in helping The Peregrine Fund discover that veterinary diclofenac was the primary cause of mortality that drove the catastrophic decline of Gyps vultures in South Asia. He also worked with The Peregrine Fund to discover and prevent the viral agent causing mortality in captive Aplomado Falcons, and to expose lead from spent ammunition, a fatal contaminant in food consumed by California Condors, as a contaminant also of processed venison consumed by humans. His interests and collaborations go well beyond these accomplishments; he will be missed by many.

We had to spend one night at the Jhansi station. And we were not the only ones...

An Egyptian Vulture flies over a temple in the city of Orccha

There are not only raptors in India! The Rufous Treepie and the Purple Sunbird are common in the forests of India

A long life beneath the Indian sun is reflected on the face of this shepherd in the village of Nimli

The majestic tiger hides behind the bushes of Bandhavgarh forest

The Indian Crested Hawk-Eagle is a fairly common raptor, but avoided us in Bandhavgarh until the last minute

A young woman weeds on a mustard field

Another Long-billed Vulture carrying nesting material - this time inside Bhandavgarh National Park

During a five-days raptor survey in Rajhastan we had the opportunity to see Steppe Eagles and Lagger Falcons, among others

Find more articles about Aplomado Falcon, California Condor, Egyptian Vulture, Long-billed Vulture, Pallas's Fish Eagle, Peregrine Falcon, Asia-Pacific