ESTCOURT: Vulture count starts to soar
This Vulture Restaurant and Hide also serves to educate the younger generation on the importance of these birds
The first Saturday of September is recognised annually as International Vulture Awareness Day.
This is done to highlight the plight of these birds that are so underrated but perform an important ecological function as they face so many threats to their existence.
We have nine species of vulture in South Africa: Hooded Vulture (critically endangered); White Headed Vulture (critically endangered); White Back Vulture (critically endangered); Bearded Vulture (critically endangered); Lappet-Faced Vulture (endangered); and Cape Vulture (endangered).
Three other species of vulture – namely Palm-Nut Vulture, Egyptian Vulture and Ruppell’s Vulture – have been recorded in South Africa.
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The Egyptian Vulture appears to no longer be a resident vulture of South Africa.
The Ruppell’s Vulture seems to be following the same route, as only a handful of sightings have been made in South Africa.
They are, however, more common in Northern Africa. The vultures that appear in the Champagne Valley are the Cape Vulture and the Bearded Vulture.
Roy Strydom started the Vulture Restaurant in 2008, situated in the Central Drakensberg.
“Realising the plight of the vulture and understanding the huge ecological function these birds contribute, I made it my passion to get involved, together with my Honourary Officer Group, to create a safe feeding ground for these birds. At the first feeding in 2008, we attracted six birds; Cape Vultures only. On Saturday, September 5, 2020, a total of 530 Cape Vultures and nine Bearded Vultures – three of which were juveniles – were counted,” he said.
Carcasses are collected from surrounding farms. These have to be vetted, making sure they have not been injected with harmful substances that could kill the vultures.
This Vulture Restaurant and Hide also serves to educate the younger generation on the importance of these birds.
Visitors to the area can also book the hide for a day, but this happens by booking at least two weeks in advance.
The Bearded Vulture has, in recent years, suffered a decline of 30%.
There are estimated to be 100 breeding pairs and a total of only 320 birds left in the wild.
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