Which critically endangered vulture declined by over 99% in India due to diclofenac poisoning?

The white-rumped vulture was the critically endangered vulture that declined by over 99% in India because of diclofenac poisoning. Also called the Indian white-backed vulture, it is *Gyps bengalensis*, a large Old World vulture that once occurred widely across the Indian subcontinent.

The collapse began in the 1990s after diclofenac became widely used as a veterinary anti-inflammatory drug for cattle and other livestock. Vultures feeding on treated carcasses ingested drug residues and suffered fatal kidney failure. The white-rumped vulture was especially sensitive: its population in the region fell by about 99.7% between 1993 and 2002.

The crisis also affected the Indian vulture and slender-billed vulture, but the white-rumped vulture is the clearest match for a decline described as over 99%. India banned veterinary diclofenac in 2006, while meloxicam became an important safer alternative. The loss of vultures had wider effects because carcasses remained longer in the environment and feral dog numbers increased. A common mistake is to attribute the collapse primarily to habitat loss; the evidence identifies veterinary diclofenac as the pivotal cause of the rapid crash.