eco shout

This week Eco Shout will focus on 5 different endangered animal species in SA

South Africa boasts in incredible wildlife heritage, there is no doubting this. But something else that has become very clear recently is that some of our beloved species are in great danger. The plummeting rhino figures are a rather worrisome example of this.
But unfortunately, it’s not only the rhino that faces certain human-induced threats in the wild. The IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature) has created a Red List on which they publish a magnitude of species around the world, specifying their level of endangerment and the reasons for this.

Cape vulture

IUCN Red List status: Vulnerable

We easily underestimate the importance of vultures, perhaps because the term in itself has quite a negative connotation. But the essence of being a vulture is to clean up, and therefore, do good. By eating off carcasses they avoid diseases from spreading amongst the animal kingdom. Cape vultures are only found in southern Africa, limiting the already decreasing population.

Major threats
Loss of habitat, electrocution on pylons or collision with cables and unintentional poisoning.

Current conservation efforts
VulPro is one of the leading Cape vulture conservation organisations in the country. They aim not only to conserve and protect Cape vultures, but also to raise awareness around them. They launched a breeding and rehabilitation project fairly recently and the first captive bred vulture chick hatched on 1 September last year in the Johannesburg Zoo.

How you can help

You can acquire a My Planet card for free and make VulPro your beneficiary. Every time you swipe the card at participating stores, a certain percentage of your purchase goes to VulPro.
VulPro has a whishlist of simple items needed for smooth operations. If you’re able to donate any of these, it’ll be greatly appreciated.
Volunteer at the VulPro centre, just outside of Hartebeespoort.
Donate money to VulPro or the Endangered Wildlife Trust’s Birds of Prey programme.