Bearded vulture on the decline
2003-02-09 20:53
Mtubatuba, KwaZulu-Natal - The number of the bearded vultures, South Africa's largest and rarest vulture, has declined by up to 70% over the last 20 years, the Wildlands Trust said on Sunday.
The findings are contained in a comprehensive survey of the vulture population, said trust CEO Dr Andrew Venter.
Venter said the findings were considered very accurate because researchers, for the first time, used a dedicated helicopter to map out the nesting sites.
"We realised that ground surveys and previous helicopter mappings had their limitations, so we secured R40 000 for a helicopter. We used a Eurocopter, which is very quiet and caused no visible distress to the birds," he said.
The survey was funded by the Wildlands Trust and undertaken by Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife, KwaZulu-Natal's conservation management agency.
Venter said the Wildlands Trust was pleased to have been able to help with the census, which revealed that the bearded vulture - also known as the lammergeier - was in dire straits. Nesting sites had decreased from 32 to a mere nine.
"We hope that with this information, conservation agencies can give the bearded vulture the attention it deserves.
"Ideally this survey should be followed up with quarterly surveys, just to track nesting patterns over two years. We need to confirm the statistics.
"We are now urgently seeking funds to continue the survey and to monitor the vulture population. We also need to ascertain what led to the dramatic decline in the numbers of these birds."
- SAPA