DULLSTROOM – The conservation, protection and care of endangered wildlife is an ongoing process in South Africa. Raising funds for anti-poaching activities and techniques is much easier for rhino conservation than for any other game and birds.
And this, warns respected conservationist like Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT’s) Mr André Botha, Dr Gerhard Verdoorn, director of the Griffon Poison Information Centre and Mr Gerrie Camacho of the Mpumalanga Tourism and Parks Agency, should be a wake-up call and suggest that the country look at the possibility of a conservation fund in which all endangered species should share equal importance.
With World Rhino Day just behind us, Lowvelder decided to celebrate the national bird, the blue crane on this, the country’s 21st Heritage Day celebration.
The name of the species comes from the Latin word paradiseus, meaning paradise and possibly referring to the bird’s almost angelic appearance. The national bird is endemic to southern Africa with most of its range falling in South Africa.
Strong populations are found in the Overberg region in the Western Cape, the Eastern Cape and western KwaZulu-Natal, as well as in the Dullstroom, Kaapsehoop and Chrissiesmeer areas.
The blue cranes’ population figures of 25 000 were interpreted in July 2015 by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red Data list, as stable, although the classification remains vulnerable.
According to the IUCN list, the threats to the conservation of the blue crane include poisoning, use in traditional medicinal treatments or muti trade, drowning in farm reservoirs, food shortages, loss of suitable habitat and power lines.
Eskom recently announced that the company is working with the EWT, Bird Life South Africa, Middelpunt Wetland Trust and the Vulture Rehabilitation Programme to address this threat, or to mitigate the impact of collisions.
Collisions with power lines normally mean that birds can no longer fly and might lead to a loss of life.
Various measures taken by Eskom include bird flappers, flight diverter spirals, bird guards, raptor protectors and also nocturnal devices. The latest was installing the world-first solar-powered nocturnal bird anti-collision device.
