SINGAPORE: A Himalayan vulture rescued by Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (ACRES) died on Jan 15, the animal protection charity confirmed on Jan 19.
This is the second death of a Himalayan vulture after another bird rescued by the National Parks Board (NParks) was put down on Jan 7 because of declining health.
ACRES chief executive officer Kalai Vanan Balakrishnan said a post-mortem showed that the large raptor died of “acute intoxication from pre-existing kidney and gastrointestinal problems”, which were exacerbated by stress and exhaustion.
Its carcass has been transferred to the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum, he added.
The migratory bird was rescued by ACRES on Jan 11 after being spotted on the East Coast Parkway.
Kalai said: “During his treatment, the vulture seemed to show glimpses of progress. While he was being attended to indoors, we were separately preparing our outdoor cage for him as well, as it can be stressful for such a large bird to be confined indoors.
“Sadly, his condition took a sudden turn for the worse and deteriorated quickly over a 12-hour period on Jan 15. Our vet team responded immediately with emergency care, but the vulture passed on close to midnight whilst under attempts by our vet team to stabilise him.”
On Jan 14, The Straits Times reported that a vulture rescued by NParks was euthanised. Its carcass was also transferred to the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum for education and research. The museum is in the National University of Singapore’s Kent Ridge campus.
Mass sightings of Himalayan vultures in Singapore started on Jan 4 at Maju Forest in Clementi.
The Himalayan vulture – native to mountain ranges in northern India – is considered a vagrant bird species in Singapore. This means it appears far outside its normal geographic range, usually as a rare and irregular occurrence.
Known for their long, broad wings and whitish streaks on their brownish mantle and scapulars, the birds are currently classified as “near threatened” by BirdLife International, a global partnership of non-governmental organisations dedicated to bird conservation. - The Straits Times/ANN
