Page 12 - 16 May 2025

PAGE 12 · THE REPORTER 16 MAY 2025

sources say 123, were captive-bred babies were We are extremely grateful to
poisoned in the Kruger often quite happy to 'hang the rescue team, they
National Park on 8 May around' and become 'roof- managed to save 84 out of
2025. A poached elephant sitters' for a couple of the 89 poisoned vultures still
carcass was laced with weeks, months and some alive, from a slow and painful
poison. Why? According to would even return (just like death. The rescue was by a
what we know about vultures when your child leaves joint team of SANParks
and what is surmised, is that home and comes back to rangers and Endangered
vultures flying overhead is visit!) after a year. My heart Wildlife Trust (EWT) officials.
I have often written about the
importance of Vultures in the the first give-away of a dead would skip for joy when this Thank you to everyone,
ecosystem, and in our lives. animal, especially bigger happened, but equally be including every volunteer,
Vultures are crucial to the carcasses. They often assist shattered when a young vet, pilot and ranger who
South African and any anti-poaching teams by fledgling lost it’s life to assisted and involved in the
ecosystem, acting as alerting them to a carcass. powerlines or be killed on a rescue operation. You are all
nature's cleanup crew by It seems as if they were wind turbine or drown in a heroes. Lappet-faced Vulture (Swartaasvoël) Kgalagadi Transfrontier
efficiently removing car- specifically targeted with this reservoir. This was always What can we do? Report all Park
casses and preventing the poisoning. going to be a reality as there injured birds to VulPro or to
spread of disease. The are those dangers out there Kate Webster in Queens-
decline of vulture popu- I will place an article about for the birds. I was involved town. Spread the word, don’t
lations in South Africa is a this poisoning elsewhere. with 4 such releases and u s e p o i s o n i n a n
serious concern, impacting One of the local Vulture each time the number of irresponsible manner, or best
ecosystem health and rescue heros, Kate Webster, fledglings released grew. of all, “don’t use poison.” If
potentially leading to wrote a very touching piece This part of the breeding you do, burn the carcasses,
increased disease trans- on her Facebook page. It program has now moved to whether rodents or other
mission and human-wildlife really touched me and I trust S h a m w a r i @ V u l P r o , creatures, as secondary
conflict. Lets look at the it will touch you too. however, still in the Eastern poisoning of owls, other
status of a few of our South “Mass poisoning of Cape, and I continue to birds and animals is also a
African Vultures. rehabilitate vultures at terrible and cruel reality.
vultures in the Kruger NP- Rookwood farm.
The Lappet-faced Vulture my perspective. Cape Vultures are endemic Please be responsible and
(Torgos tracheliotos), the It is just over 11 years ago to southern Africa with most look after God’s wonderful
largest vulture on the that I was a witness to a creation and all its creatures.
continent of Africa. Their mass poisoning of vultures. breeding birds occurring Lappet-faced Vulture (Swartaasvoël)
population is estimated to be This time only one species within the boundaries of
South Africa. The captive-
around 180 breeding pairs of vulture, namely Cape bred program plays a huge
(360 mature birds). This Vulture and not in a
population is considered N a t i o n a l Pa r k . T h e role in supplementing the
regionally endangered, and difference is that the wild populations and it
does seem to have had a
is expected to decline number of Capes who lost positive impact on the bird
further. A recent decline of their lives in the recent numbers and sightings,
nest sites in one province incident was just under half
indicated a 60% reduction in the Capes I found lying in h o w e v e r, o n e m u s t
one year, highlighting the the veld that day. To me it remember that maturity (as
with most vultures) is only
urgency of conservation was truly a traumatic reached after 5/6 years. At
efforts.
experience and one I battled present the captive-bred
White-backed Vulture: The to process for a long time. program is producing
White-backed Vulture (Gyps The agony and pain the between 15 and 25
africanus) are the most birds suffered. I think no fledglings a year at a huge
widespread and common m a n c a n a c t u a l l y cost (monies, hours, food,
vulture species in Africa. In c o m p r e h e n d . S o m e labour, etc to name a few White-backed Vulture (Witrugaasvoël) coming in to land. (Kgalagadi)
2000 White-backed Vultures managed to stagger off a items). To then put it into
were listed as Vulnerable in short distance while others perspective, a poisoning
the Red Data Book. In 2015 attempted to escape only like the recent one or the
their status was uplifted to falling victim to a fence line one I experienced wipes out
Critically Endangered. The preventing them from any gains on population
population size reduction getting away from the numbers.
has been listed as 90% over scene, while some died The numbers of Cape
the last 3 generations, a rate instantly right next to the Vultures poisoned in the E
which is not sustainable and poisoned carcasses. I recall Cape - 46, the number of
will possibly see this species standing all alone in this birds poisoned in the KNP -
going extinct over the next w i d e - o p e n h i l l t o p 20. So, to put it into
three generations. There is a surveying this carnage with perspective, one/ two year's
regional population of about tears streaming down my captive breeding group/s, is
7350 mature birds left. cheeks. Then suddenly lost with one mass
wanting to flee the scene to
C a p e Vu l t u r e ( G y p s poisoning! How many more
coprotheres): The Cape remove the horror of what I mass poisonings (whatever
Vulture is southern Africa’s had just witnessed. the motives are) can this
only endemic vulture A s t h e y e a r s h a v e species endure to not slip Cape Vulture
species. While the species is progressed, my work with down the listing from (Kransaasvoël)
still listed as Vulnerable by vultures continued and I endangered to critical or
the IUCN, they are facing was privileged to become even extinct?
various threats, including part of the captive breeding The African White-backed
poisoning, collisions with program of Cape Vultures by vulture is teetering on the
powerlines, and habitat loss. VulPro. Initially by sending brink of extinction already
Conservation efforts are adult breeding non- with the Lappet-faced (both
yielding positive results, with releasable birds, that I had victims of this KNP
reports of increased breed- collected all over the poisoning) not far behind.
ing pairs and sightings in province mainly due to Remember every vulture
historical roosting sites. The powerline injuries, to plays a vital role in the
southern African population VulPro. In 2021 the first ecosystem.
is listed at 2900 breeding group of young captive- I felt I needed to re-live this
pairs, of which approxi- bred Cape Vulture fledglings horror and share this with
mately 1450 reside in the were transported down to you because as with the
Maloti-Drakensberg moun- the Eastern Cape, and we highs of releasing birds
tains, about 20% of the released these youngsters comes the very lows of
population. The Cape i n t o t h e w i l d f r o m losing them which this
Vulture is the one we see in Rookwood farm. These recent mass poisoning has
this area. We are proud of were huge steps into just done.
local farmers and individuals supplementing the wild
who conserve these birds, Cape Vulture populations. I quote; "you guys will
such as Ian and Elize Cloete As a group of fledglings ALWAYS be vulnerable
(Karringmelk-spruit VUlture were released into the open w i t h i n m y l i f e
Colony), as well as all the skies, I always felt like a time.............."”
farmers in the area. parent allowing your child I can’t help wondering how
freedom however, still many years, decades it will
Why am I speaking about The horrific scene of all the dead vultures in the recent poisoning of an elephant carcass in
vultures AGAIN? wanting to protect them take the White-backed
from all the dangers and Vulture population to recover the Kruger National Park: 123 dead: 102 White-backed Vultures, 20 Cape Vultures, and one
Over 100 Vultures, some evils out there. These from this set-back. Lappet-faced Vulture. Photograph: EWT