Scientists have shed light on the vast distances traveled by vultures—with several birds regularly commuting over 1,200 km in week-long excursions. These epic journeys were observed by scientists using specialized GPS tags to track the movements of African white-backed vultures in Tanzania. One bird was tracked visiting eight countries as part of a “grand tour” […]
Tag: White-backed Vulture
Trafficked: Kidnapped chimps, jailed rhino horn traffickers, and seized donkey parts
LUBUMBASHI Democratic Republic of Congo Three chimpanzees have been kidnapped and are being held for ransom after intruders broke into a primate sanctuary in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Franck Chantereau, founder of the J.A.C.K. Primate Rehabilitation Centre, says the kidnappers got into the 7-hectare (17-acre) facility in the southern city of Lubumbashi at around 3 […]
As poachers poison wildlife, Zimbabwe finds an antidote in tougher laws
Nearly a decade ago, poachers used cyanide to slaughter more than 135 elephants for their ivory in and around Zimbabwe’s Hwange National Park. In the wake of these poisonings, the Southern African country tightened its laws to prevent similar deadly attacks on its wildlife. A new study shows that, even as international demand for ivory […]
![A Cape vulture flies low at the Vulpro Vulture Rehabilitation Centre in Hartebeepoort Dam in the Magalisburg region of South Africa in 2015 [Mujahid Safodien/AFP] (AFP)](https://focusingonwildlife.com/news/wp-content/uploads/000_Par8276044.jpg "More than 150 endangered vultures poisoned in South Africa, Botswana")
More than 150 endangered vultures poisoned in South Africa, Botswana
At least 150 critically-endangered vultures were poisoned to death in separate incidents in Botswana and South Africa, conservationists said, warning that the mass killings pushed the birds closer to extinction. In the latest incidents, more than 50 white-backed vultures were found dead in Botswana’s northern Chobe district on Friday, while about 100 others were discovered […]
Cheetah reintroduction in Malawi brings vultures back to the skies
Four species of critically endangered vulture have returned to a park in southern Malawi from which they disappeared more than 20 years ago, and their comeback is credited to the reintroduction of cheetahs, lions and the carcasses the cats left behind, conservationists say. In 2017, seven cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus) were reintroduced to Liwonde National Park […]
Poison used to kill lions and hyenas is indirectly killing Kenya’s vultures and other raptors
Darcy Ogada rarely spots raptors from her home in central Kenya any more. The birds were once a common sight in the industrial town of Thika, 25 miles (40km) north of Nairobi, but the region’s forests are rapidly declining, and the few remaining raptor populations face the added threats of poison and persecution. “It is […]
Growing Demand for Vulture Heads Threatens the Birds’ Survival in Africa
Across the continent, traditional healers are increasingly using the body parts of vultures, creating an illegal market that has experts alarmed. Last year, at dawn on March 26, an exhausted Mohamed Henriques slid into his airplane seat. He had just managed to make it onto the last flight that left Guinea-Bissau before the small West […]
Investigating the mystery behind Guinea-Bissau’s mass vulture deaths
In late February, a local worker in a rice field on the outskirts of Bafatá, Guinea-Bissau, discovered a group of around 200 recently-deceased vultures. This shocking scene was the first of many to emerge across the West African nation over the next few days. Soon, more incidents of mass vulture deaths were reported, both on […]