Vulture and anthrax
Photo: Shafiq Islam / Driknews
The other day a report in ATN news on vulture has admirably awakened my feelings while the country has been threatened by anthrax (A highly infectious animal disease, especially cattle and sheep; it can be transmitted to people). According to the news item, vulture, an ecologically vital bird, helps stop germs from breaking out after it eats dead cattle and sheep. In their absence if some other animals like dogs and cats or any other birds eat the dead cattle, it opens the road to dangerous diseases like anthrax. Because they do not have the resistance power to kill the germ even after digestion. These birds are of great value as scavengers, especially in a country like Bangladesh. Vulture stomach acid is exceptionally corrosive, allowing them to safely digest putrid carcasses infected with Botulinum toxin, hog cholera, and anthrax bacteria that would be lethal to other scavengers. This also enables them to use their reeking, corrosive vomit as a defensive projectile when threatened. Vultures urinate straight down their legs; the uric acid kills bacteria accumulated from walking through carcasses, and also acts as evaporative cooling. Most of our countrymen believe, vulture is the sign of bleak future, but these birds are friends of people. We have to be seriously careful and abstain from killing these birds.
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