With the future survival of vultures being dependant on man, educational and awareness programmes are an important aspect of the vulture unit’s activities. Not only presenting talks to the general public, but taking these lessons and messages to schools and rural communities where the importance of vultures are highlighted. With the vulture unit’s very first vulture ambassador named Percy, children, adults, the youth and organizations are given a personal experience with a Cape Griffon vulture.

Ambassador Vulture Percy 2 months old

Percy at work

THE VULTURE

A vulture is an easily recognizable bird with its large size, bald-head, hooked bill which feeds on carcasses and majestically soars through the skies. Vultures are found on all continents except Australia and Antarctica.
Vultures have always evoked strong emotions from people; from being seen as symbols of divine qualities, clairvoyant whereby they are able to ‘see’ into the future to being misunderstood and called ‘ugly, disease riddled’ birds. Vultures have for years been persecuted and misunderstood by many, it is for this reason that they are continuously declining at a rapid rate. Their habitat and unique behaviour is unknown, or misunderstood and so is their reason for existence.

Humans have made astonishing advances in technology and communication in recent years; however we are dangerously close to losing valuable species on our continent due to ignorance and mismanagement. Today, vultures all over the world are facing similar threats:

• Poisoning
• Electrocution
• Habitat destruction
• Declining food availability
• Drowning in farm reservoirs
• Disturbance at colonies
• Illegal collection for traditional medicine

IMPORTANCE OF VULTURES

Vultures, and other avian scavengers play a very important ecological role in clearing the veld of carcasses. By rapidly consuming remains of dead animals, vultures can prevent these carcasses from acting as host to various diseases that may spread to livestock. They can also alert farmers to dead stock, in this way potential disease outbreaks can be avoided.
Vultures play a vital role in helping landowners get rid of carcasses which are unfit for human consumption and which would normally have been ‘hygienically’ disposed of by burning or burying.

“The survival of vultures in many parts of Africa depends on the goodwill of landowners and the managers of wild animals as well as domestic livestock. Strenuous efforts have to be made to convince people that vultures are a useful component of the environment, and that they have a role to play as indicators of environmental health in modern Africa.”

(Vultures of Africa)

SOUTHERN AFRICAN VULTURES

There are 9 vulture species in southern Africa namely; Cape Vulture (Gyps coprotheres), African White-backed Vulture (Gyps africanus), Hooded Vulture (Necrosyrtes monachus), Lappet-faced Vulture (Torgos tracheliotos), White-headed Vulture (Trigonoceps occipitalis), Bearded Vulture (Gypaetus barbatus), Rüppels Vulture (Gyps rueppellii), Palm-nut Vulture (Gypohierax angolensis) and the Egyptian Vulture (Neophron percnopterus). 7 Of the 9 species are listed in the ‘Eskom Red Data Book of Birds of South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland’ (Keith N. Barnes: 2000) as either vulnerable, endangered or regionally extinct.

MAJOR VULTURE THREATS

POISONING

Vultures are victims of irresponsible poison use and to-date, this has led to the disappearance of vultures and other birds of prey from around southern Africa. There is a lack of education regarding the correct use of poisons and their effects on our wildlife. Vultures congregate in large numbers at carcasses and it is for this reason that many are killed at one time.

Vultures can be poisoned through primary or secondary means:
1) Primary poisoning – organism is directly exposed to toxic substance through oral or inhalation intake, or dermal exposure.
2) Secondary poisoning – organism consumes another organism that has been exposed to toxins. E.g a jackal consumes a carcass which has been laced with poison, dies and is then eaten by a vulture.

Pesticides mostly involved in bird of prey and predator poisoning incidents include:

•Strychnine
• Compound 1080 (illegal)
• Aldicarb
• Carbofuran
• Methamidophos
• Diazinon
• Fenthion
• Parathion
• Monocrotophos

POWERLINES

Since the erection of powerlines, vulture numbers have declined rapidly due to the severity of injuries resulting from powerline collisions or electrocutions. Vultures use electricity poles and towers for perches from which to observe their surroundings. As vultures are such large birds, they run the risk of being electrocuted on certain structures as well as colliding into the overhead wires causing permanent wing damage or often severely broken wings.

Powerlines are a major concern for vulture conservation and methods are underway, by the Eskom/EWT Partnership in erecting safe and vulture friendly powerlines with modified and safe perches, together with insulating live conductors.

ILLEGAL TRADE OF VULTURES FOR TRADITIONAL MEANS

Vultures have, for years, been used for traditional medicine in the treatment of headaches and other ailments. With traditional healers becoming an acceptable means of treatment and now also covered by medical aids, vulture harvesting is on the increase.
Some traditional beliefs believe vultures are clairvoyant and are therefore harvested for luck and other potential gambling uses for example horse-racing and the latest being the National Lottery.

There are approximately 100 000 to 300 000 traditional healers in South Africa alone with 34 000 – 44 000 practicing on a full-time basis.

Vultures have three main qualities and are considered a priority species in medicinal trade:
• Power of sight
• Power of flight
• Ability to congregate quickly and in large numbers

LOSS OF AVAILABLE FOOD

Many years ago, vultures could fly for 250 km in any direction around the Magaliesberg range, across highveld grasslands or Acacia savanna populated by a wide variety of potential food. Today, their way is blocked in all directions; in the south by the densely populated Witwatersrand, to the east by the city of Pretoria and to the north and north-west by some of the world’s richest platinum mines and the city of Rustenberg. All of this has resulted in the substantial loss of available food for vultures.

To help combat insufficient available food, vulture restaurants have been established.

What is a vulture restaurant?

A vulture restaurant can be described as a specific site where animal carcasses, both domestic and wild animals of any shape or size, are provided as an artificial food source for vultures. Restaurants provide a feeding haven for vultures where uncontaminated and safe food is supplied on a regular basis.

Vulture restaurants have many important functions namely:

• Regular supply of food
• Nutrient provision (providing crushed bone for calcium intake)
• Provision of safe food
• Research i.e in the case of feeding behaviour and monitoring
• Education coupled with tourism