Monte helps vultures spread their wings

VulPro, a vulture conservation programme in the North West Province’s Magaliesberg mountains, is located within 100km of two active and one extinct Cape Vulture breeding colonies.

In 2011, a captive-breeding programme for Cape Vulture population supplementation was initiated by VulPro, allowing eggs to be artificially incubated and returned to the parents for rearing outside of human contact. Between 2011 and 2014, VulPro’s breeding population has produced nine healthy chicks for release. Chicks born in this programme will eventually establish the founding population of the Magaliesberg Cape Vulture supplementation programme and Cape Vulture reintroduction programmes within southern Africa.

In February this year, VulPro will release seven chicks raised in the wild over the past three years and another three captive bred Cape vultures.

“We are extremely proud to be sponsoring the release of one of VulPro’s chicks through funds raised from initiatives at the Montecasino Bird Gardens over the last few months,” said Deidre Jameson, property manager of Montecasino.

Montecasino’s adopted young Cape Vulture will be released into the wild fitted with a tracking device, and will be tracked for five years for research and data collection purposes in the hopes of assisting in the conservation of this often misunderstood bird.

“Categorised as ‘vulnerable’, the global population numbers and the foraging range of the Cape vulture continue to decline due to human induced threats,” said Kerri Wolter, founder of VulPro. “There are less than 4 000 breeding pairs left in South Africa, Botswana and Lesotho combined and the species no longer breeds in much of its traditional range, which includes Namibia, Zimbabwe and Swaziland.”

The adopted Montecasino Bird Gardens vulture, a female named Cassie, will be released into the wild at a ceremony at VulPro on 15 February.

Details: kerri.wolter@gmail.com; www.vulpro.com