The near extinction of a species is leading to some unexpected consequences. A group of Parsi Irani Zoroastrians are forced to seek alternative methods of burial as the local vulture populations are depleted. The Parsis traditionally practice sky burial to dispose of their dead. The bodies of the dead are placed in the open air to be consumed by vultures and reduced to bones, but the disappearence of the scavengers means that the bodies are taking too long to decompose.
The birds fate may be directly connected to their diet. A relatively new drug commonly administered to cattle, Diclofenac, is possibly the cause of the decline. The deadly drug is injested along with cattle corpses, and when it was introduced to the area in the early 90s, the vultures disappeared.
