Local bird faces extinction

2005-11-10 10:40

Fred Katerere

Limpopo - The stately Southern Ground Hornbill, or "Lehututu" as it's locally called, may not be around for much longer.

These huge black birds with their distinctive beaks and bright red wattles are part of the hornbill family that occur naturally only in Africa and Asia. But hornbill numbers are declining due to loss of habitat.

"Many species will not survive without human intervention," said chief executive officer of the Limpopo Tourism and Parks Board, Benny Boshielo.

He was addressing the 4th International Hornbill Conference which took place in Africa for the first time. In Limpopo, there are more than 40 protected areas, of which several are inhabited by hornbills.

About 80 delegates from 20 countries attended the conference, which was held at the Mabula Game Reserve in Bela Bela and ended on Thursday.

The conference was held under the theme, The active management of hornbills and their habitats for conservation.

"For any successful conservation effort, the active involvement of provincial authorities, conservation agencies and communities is needed," said Boshielo.

The world's 60 species of hornbills are rapidly declining in numbers worldwide.

There are less than 1 500 Southern Ground Hornbills left in South Africa. Their numbers have dropped by more than 10% in the past three decades.

The province has made the Lehututu its avian flagship, in the same way it's made the mighty baobab its provincial symbol and flagship of the savannah biome.

Mabula Game Reserve is also the base for the The Ground Hornbill Research and Conservation Project, which was started in 1999.

The conference was supported by the Hornbill Research Foundation in Bangkok, the Transvaal Museum in Pretoria, the Endangered Wildlife Trust in Johannesburg, the Percy Fitzpatrick Institute of African Ornithology in Cape Town, and sponsors Sasol.

- African Eye