They might not be the something we think about often, but vultures perform a very important ecological function. But sadly, numbers across the African continent have been dwindling drastically over the past decades.
The reason for this decrease is poisoning, where they are targeted by poachers because they draw unwanted attention to their illegal activities. This has dire consequences for the environment, agriculture and people in general.
Afrivet’s general manager Dr Peter Oberem says, “Vultures play an important role in the environment. Through their highly-efficient disposal of organic waste, they are indispensable for cycling nutrients through the environment.”
Africa is known to be home to nine species. Removing them from the ecosystem has a major impact, Oberem adds.
“If vultures were to be removed from the ecosystem, carcasses will remain exposed to the environment for weeks, allowing bacteria and disease to spread amongst wildlife and livestock.”
Human health under threat
“The decline in vultures also threatens human health. These birds of prey provide a free waste management service. In countries where people live close to nature, livestock and wildlife, disease management is essential and also costly,” says Oberem.
According to the Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT), vulture poisoning made headlines in South Africa in August when more than 100 died in the Kruger National Park after feeding off a buffalo carcass laced with poison.
“EWT stated that 104 critically endangered White-backed vultures were among the species poisoned. Others include one critically endangered White-headed vulture, two vulnerable Cape vultures and one endangered Lappet-faced vulture. The event has led to the loss of 5% of the region’s vultures,” says Oberem.
A cry for help
According to EWT, the real issues need to be faced effectively, with meticulous detail and focus.
“This decline was the motivation for the drafting of an international Multi-species Action Plan for African-Eurasian Vultures (Vulture MsAP) which aims to stop this trend through effective intervention through a range of actions. Poisoning in its various forms is the most significant threat to these birds in Africa and impacts other wildlife across the continent,” says EWT.
Furthermore, Oberem explains that in order to understand the importance of vultures, Africans should be aware of their responsibility, to understand what is safe and unsafe, especially when it comes to the chemicals that are used in animals, connecting these scavengers to the food chain supply.
“Across the Indian subcontinent, the Gyps vulture population decline was initially thought to be caused by unintentional NSAID (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug) diclofenacpoisoning, but several other NSAIDs have been identified as toxic to vultures. Worldwide, a search has been initiated to find other vulture-safe drugs to reduce the use of these toxic NSAIDS,” Oberem says.
Research has shown that tolfenamic acid is likely to be safe to Gyps vultures at concentrations encountered by wild birds, and could therefore be promoted as a safe alternative to toxic NSAIDs, he adds.
“Vultures play an essential role in the environment and it is up to all of us to educate ourselves about their necessity in our eco-system as a free waste management service and protect them through responsible use.”
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