Under the radar: The availability of nonsteroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs in South America and implications for avian scavenger populations
Abstract In the late 1990s, diclofenac, a nonsteroidal anti‐inflammatory drug (NSAID), was identified as the cause of the Old World vulture population decline on the Indian subcontinent. Diclofenac and other NSAIDs (e.g., flunixin) have also led to the mortality of other vulture species in Europe. H...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wiley
2025-04-01
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| Series: | Conservation Science and Practice |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1111/csp2.70009 |
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| author | Kane P. J. Colston Irene Bueno Lucas Gelid Juan Manuel Grande |
| author_facet | Kane P. J. Colston Irene Bueno Lucas Gelid Juan Manuel Grande |
| author_sort | Kane P. J. Colston |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract In the late 1990s, diclofenac, a nonsteroidal anti‐inflammatory drug (NSAID), was identified as the cause of the Old World vulture population decline on the Indian subcontinent. Diclofenac and other NSAIDs (e.g., flunixin) have also led to the mortality of other vulture species in Europe. However, the threat to raptors from these drugs on other continents remains largely unknown. We conducted a search of veterinary pharmaceutical products registered in all 10 Spanish and Portuguese‐speaking countries across South America. All products containing either diclofenac or flunixin were recorded, along with the intended species and product description. We found diclofenac and flunixin are approved for veterinary use in every country searched. Many available products exist as combination therapies (combined with antibiotic drugs) or are marketed solely as antimicrobial drugs, despite containing NSAIDs. With at least 21 South American scavenging raptor species potentially susceptible to exposure to NSAIDs, the plausible risk to the majority of these species has not been evaluated to date. Coupled with a growing livestock agricultural sector across South America, there exists an urgent need to generate scientific evidence to understand the risk of these drugs to South American avian scavengers and to establish suitable management strategies to prevent future population declines. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-ff4a2ed788074451a8100b5c63800d9b |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2578-4854 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-04-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Conservation Science and Practice |
| spelling | doaj-art-ff4a2ed788074451a8100b5c63800d9b2025-08-20T02:16:29ZengWileyConservation Science and Practice2578-48542025-04-0174n/an/a10.1111/csp2.70009Under the radar: The availability of nonsteroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs in South America and implications for avian scavenger populationsKane P. J. Colston0Irene Bueno1Lucas Gelid2Juan Manuel Grande3Bristol Veterinary School University of Bristol Bristol UKBristol Veterinary School University of Bristol Bristol UKBrangus La Legua de Gelid Santiago del Estero ArgentinaColaboratorio de Biodiversidad, Ecología y Conservación, (INCITAP‐CONICET‐UNLPam/FCEyN‐UNLPam) Santa Rosa La Pampa ArgentinaAbstract In the late 1990s, diclofenac, a nonsteroidal anti‐inflammatory drug (NSAID), was identified as the cause of the Old World vulture population decline on the Indian subcontinent. Diclofenac and other NSAIDs (e.g., flunixin) have also led to the mortality of other vulture species in Europe. However, the threat to raptors from these drugs on other continents remains largely unknown. We conducted a search of veterinary pharmaceutical products registered in all 10 Spanish and Portuguese‐speaking countries across South America. All products containing either diclofenac or flunixin were recorded, along with the intended species and product description. We found diclofenac and flunixin are approved for veterinary use in every country searched. Many available products exist as combination therapies (combined with antibiotic drugs) or are marketed solely as antimicrobial drugs, despite containing NSAIDs. With at least 21 South American scavenging raptor species potentially susceptible to exposure to NSAIDs, the plausible risk to the majority of these species has not been evaluated to date. Coupled with a growing livestock agricultural sector across South America, there exists an urgent need to generate scientific evidence to understand the risk of these drugs to South American avian scavengers and to establish suitable management strategies to prevent future population declines.https://doi.org/10.1111/csp2.70009avian scavengerdiclofenaceagleflunixinintoxicationnonsteroidal anti‐inflammatory drug |
| spellingShingle | Kane P. J. Colston Irene Bueno Lucas Gelid Juan Manuel Grande Under the radar: The availability of nonsteroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs in South America and implications for avian scavenger populations Conservation Science and Practice avian scavenger diclofenac eagle flunixin intoxication nonsteroidal anti‐inflammatory drug |
| title | Under the radar: The availability of nonsteroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs in South America and implications for avian scavenger populations |
| title_full | Under the radar: The availability of nonsteroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs in South America and implications for avian scavenger populations |
| title_fullStr | Under the radar: The availability of nonsteroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs in South America and implications for avian scavenger populations |
| title_full_unstemmed | Under the radar: The availability of nonsteroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs in South America and implications for avian scavenger populations |
| title_short | Under the radar: The availability of nonsteroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs in South America and implications for avian scavenger populations |
| title_sort | under the radar the availability of nonsteroidal anti inflammatory drugs in south america and implications for avian scavenger populations |
| topic | avian scavenger diclofenac eagle flunixin intoxication nonsteroidal anti‐inflammatory drug |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1111/csp2.70009 |
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