Kor. J. Orni. Vol. 19, No. 2 : 87-92, 2012 87 * Corresponding author: Chaiyan Kasorndorkbua, E-mail: trogon@gmail.com A Retrospective Study of Morbidity and Mortality of Raptors in Kasetsart University Raptor Rehabilitation Unit, 2008-2011 Kamchai Kidsin 1 ․ Pornchai Sanyathitiseree 2 ․ Duangrat Pothieng 3 Worawidh Wajjwalku 4 ․ Chaiyan Kasorndorkbua 4,5* 1 6 th -year Veterinary Student, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Kasetsart University, Bangkok, Thailand 2 Department of Large Animal and Wildlife Clinical Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Kasetsart University, Bangkok, Thailand 3 Wildlife Research Division, Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation, Thailand 4 Department of Pathology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Kasetsart University, Bangkok, Thailand 5 Kasetsart University Raptor Rehabilitation Unit, Bangkok, Thailand A retrospective study on 111 raptors received rehabilitation from 2008 to 2011 was conducted at Kasetsart University Raptor Rehabilitation Unit (KURU), Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Kasetsart University in Thailand. Twenty-seven species in Falconiformes (73 individuals) and Strigiformes (38 individuals) were admitted. The identified causes of morbidity and mortality were trauma (38.74%), orphaned young (19.82%), starvation (17.12%), infectious diseases (13.51%), metabolic bone diseases (4.50%) and others (6.31%). After treatment, 40.54% of the raptors were recovered and able for release back to the wild, 29.73% deceased, 19.82% are being rehabed (as of Jan 2012), 9.91% were kept in captivity due to injury/disease-related permanent disabilities. Trauma appears to be the predominant cause of morbidity and mortality for rehabilitated raptors in the unit. key words: morbidity, mortality, raptor, retrospective study, trauma Introduction Birds of prey are the animals on the top of food chain (Heintzelman 2004). They are important to balance the ecological niches, playing an important role in the control of environmental pests including rats, mice, insects and others. However, the morbidity and mortality of raptors have increased due to many reasons (Morishita et al. 1998), and the most considerable cause probably stemmed from human activities which negatively impact on raptor habitats (Wendell et al. 2002). The objective of this retrospective study is to identify the causes of morbidity and mortality of raptors admitted to the Kasetsart University Raptor Rehabilitation Unit (KURU), Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Kasetsart University in Thailand.