The International Vulture Awareness Day has grown from Vulture Awareness Days run by the Birds of Prey Programme in South Africa and the Hawk Conservancy Trust in England to become a recognised day that publicises the conservation of vultures to a wider audience and highlights the important work being carried out by the world’s vulture conservationists.

 

Hosted at Vulpro near Hartebeespoort Dam in the North West Province on 1 September 2012, the International Vulture Day creates awareness of the continued plight of all vulture species and highlights the work done by conservationists to monitor populations and implement effective measures to conserve these birds and their habitats.

 

All vulture species in Southern Africa are listed in the Eskom Red Data Book of Birds of South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland and face a threat of extinction in the region.

 

Since the late 1970’s, the Vulture Study Group (VSG) of the Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT) have effectively improved the conservation status of all vulture species through the implementation of conservation strategies and working with communities where these birds are found.

 

Sasol has sponsored the EWT Vulture Study Group’s Vulture Monitoring Project since 1988, which has enabled the monitoring and evaluation of vulture population trends throughout Southern Africa. Data obtained through the project has lead to a greater understanding of vulture biology and population trends, which has informed conservation efforts of vulture species in the region.

 

Richard Hughes, Sasol’s Sponsorship Manager said, “International Vulture Awareness Day is about creating awareness of the continued plight of all vulture species and highlights the work done by conservationists to monitor populations and implement effective measures to conserve these birds and their habitats.”

 

Key areas of the project are to promote vulture conservation amongst farming and rural communities of Southern Africa through engagement, to assess the status of the Southern African vulture population on a continuous basis, to maintain a high level of research on vultures in Southern Africa and to establish and maintain an African monitoring programme.

 

“We believe in the promotion of public participation in the conservation of vultures as they are a very good indicator of the health of ecosystems,” said Andre Botha, Manager: Birds of Prey Programme, EWT.