The first Saturday of September marks International Vulture Awareness Day (IVAD), an annual event dedicated to raising awareness about the world’s most imperilled group of birds. This initiative, which began in South Africa and the United Kingdom, has been observed since September 2009. Vultures, often misunderstood and unfairly maligned, play a crucial role in maintaining ecological balance. Despite their association with death and perceived negative traits, these birds are, in fact, the unsung heroes of the natural world. As the only land-dwelling obligate scavengers, vultures provide essential ecological services that benefit both the environment and human society.
The primary aims of IVAD are:
Vultures provide numerous free ecosystem services that contribute significantly to human well-being:
Recent studies have highlighted the economic and environmental advantages of healthy vulture populations:
Vultures have played important roles in human culture for thousands of years, providing cultural and spiritual services that enrich human societies.
Of the 23 vulture species worldwide, more than half are listed on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species:
A recent vulture census in seven tiger reserves and forest areas across Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Kerala has shown promising results:
The survey recorded:
WWF-India, in collaboration with Bird Count India and eBird, has announced the launch of Vulture Count 2024, scheduled from September 7th to October 6th, 2024, coinciding with International Vulture Awareness Day.
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