tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-43293146096151003912024-03-13T02:25:53.591+02:00FeatherRangerThoughts and Experiences working for Conservation and Birds in AfricaAndre Bothahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02943491875397061249noreply@blogger.comBlogger22125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4329314609615100391.post-52767580765857124752012-01-06T05:41:00.001+02:002012-01-06T05:53:07.199+02:00Bigblackblushingchickens and the art of using a Ladder<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-G4mK26eIQ1M/TwUZ1-qBNnI/AAAAAAAAAPE/SZqbHkupXgk/s1600/Southern+Ground+Hornbill_AdM_Leeupan%252C+KNP_9.9.2011.1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-G4mK26eIQ1M/TwUZ1-qBNnI/AAAAAAAAAPE/SZqbHkupXgk/s400/Southern+Ground+Hornbill_AdM_Leeupan%252C+KNP_9.9.2011.1.jpg" width="281" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><strong>Adult Male Southern Ground Hornbill - sometimes we </strong><br />
<strong>are the ones that get scrutinised!</strong></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;">As part of its activities, our Lowveld-Kruger National Large Bird project has focused on locating and monitoring as many groups and nesting sites of the Southern Ground Hornbill <i>Bucorvus leadbeateri</i> in the Kruger National Park since its inception in 2007. Part of the activities also include the harvesting of a set quota of second chicks from selected nests to augment the captive breeding population that is used by the South African Southern Ground Hornbill Action Group (SASGHAG) to attempt to re-establish this species in its historical range in the country. The Southern Ground Hornbill is currently listed as <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Endangered </i>according to the IUCN’s Red List and is now largely restricted to protected areas in South Africa with a few small groups still being found on private land in the Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal and along the escarpment. Due to their generally shy nature (except for those few birds that have been seduced by the tidbits offered by unthinking tourists) and large patch of red skin on the face, I prefer to call them Bigblackblushingchickens.</span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-eadsqiHBgaY/TwXNHe0L5pI/AAAAAAAAAPQ/Idxy3TCUEvY/s1600/N%2527wanetsi-nest_KNP_14.12.2010.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-eadsqiHBgaY/TwXNHe0L5pI/AAAAAAAAAPQ/Idxy3TCUEvY/s320/N%2527wanetsi-nest_KNP_14.12.2010.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Two eggs is the norm for this species</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;">Southern Ground Hornbills mostly lay two eggs of which only one chick eventually survives to the fledging stage. The weaker chick does not survive the competition for food, etc in a Cain-and-Able-like situation similar to some large eagles, and it is therefore possible to harvest this chick for captive rearing to play an important role in terms of the overall conservation of the species in the country as part of the captive breeding population. The hand-rearing and captive breeding process is managed by our partners in the SASGHAG such as the Mabula Ground Hornbill Project, Mpumalanga Parks (Delecia Gunn), Johannesburg Zoo and the NZG, Pretoria. However, before we even get to the stage where chicks can be harvested, there is a lot of work that must be done.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;">We encourage rangers, guides and tourists in the Kruger National Park to report any sightings of groups of birds or nesting activities to us and have so far identified over 150 individual groups of birds across the 2 million hectares of the Park. These range in size from two to as many as nine birds. In the Kruger National Park, these birds mostly nest in suitable cavities in large trees, often along drainage lines. A range of tree species are used. There are also two known sites where potholes in a cliff were used to nest in, but neither of these are currently active.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: justify;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ytgidq5fz0o/TwZo7Req-ZI/AAAAAAAAAP0/GQj9RrNmW70/s1600/Southern+Ground+Hornbill_AdF+on+nest_Lukimbi-nest%252C+KNP_18.11.2010.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ytgidq5fz0o/TwZo7Req-ZI/AAAAAAAAAP0/GQj9RrNmW70/s320/Southern+Ground+Hornbill_AdF+on+nest_Lukimbi-nest%252C+KNP_18.11.2010.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Female giving us a beady eye <br />
while huddling over over her eggs</td></tr>
</tbody></table><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;">Finding the nests of these birds is not as easy as it sounds as they tend to be quite secretive about its location and the birds themselves can, despite their large size, disappear quite quickly in the bush, especially during the wet season. We therefore often go out very early in the morning to try and find the birds when they start calling at first light. This means that one gets up at about 02.30 in the morning to be at a site by 3.30-4am. Once the birds have been located, one hopes to either see the female move off in a particular direction to a nest after calling, or to quietly try and follow the group that will eventually make their way to the nest to provide food to the incubating female or, if the breeding attempt has advanced that far, to the fast-growing nestling. This is often the time of year when Ground Hornbills are most visible and when all members of the group can be seen carrying an array of food items to the nest. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;">Once the nest has been located, it is monitored throughout the season and, if it is used for more than a season, for as long as possible. One known nesting site on the Letaba river has been in use for almost 40 years! This requires a lot of time and effort and we travel lots of kilometres annually during the breeding season to check on nests and how the breeding season progresses at each site. In fact, the demands are such that we can realistically only focus on about 30-40 nests annually (See Google Earth image).</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1shzenyPFF4/TwZpu9KEHDI/AAAAAAAAAQA/ivHsvQbHjOw/s1600/SGH+Nesting+Sites+KNP_cropped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1shzenyPFF4/TwZpu9KEHDI/AAAAAAAAAQA/ivHsvQbHjOw/s320/SGH+Nesting+Sites+KNP_cropped.jpg" width="255" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nest sites currently monitored in KNP</td></tr>
</tbody></table></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;">The monitoring season starts in October when all known nests are visited and checked for activity. The commencement of breeding is often determined by the first decent rains. This is followed by another visit a few weeks later to check for eggs and, if those are present, to “candle” them to obtain an idea of when they are likely to hatch. Candling involves looking at the egg contents by shining a flashlight through them in a poorly-lit environment. This is quite a specialised process and we make use of the services of Mike Harman (Jhb Zoo) and Eugene Marais (NZG) to assist us in this regard. The poorly-lit area is created by covering the two observers with a thick, dark cloth and you can imagine the numerous curious stares we have encountered from passers-by over the years. One can only wonder what they made of two middle-aged men hunkering under a dark sheet in the bush during broad daylight!<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-KsaLIC5TJkg/TwZqelDIu9I/AAAAAAAAAQM/Wc_XeBQ0YSU/s1600/Kop+in+een+mus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-KsaLIC5TJkg/TwZqelDIu9I/AAAAAAAAAQM/Wc_XeBQ0YSU/s320/Kop+in+een+mus.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Putting heads together? No, just candling an egg</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Gm5QUU05Q04/TwZq6ghJtCI/AAAAAAAAAQY/4Gi7yOz-D3w/s1600/Mphongolo+North_SGH+Nest_10.2.2011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Gm5QUU05Q04/TwZq6ghJtCI/AAAAAAAAAQY/4Gi7yOz-D3w/s320/Mphongolo+North_SGH+Nest_10.2.2011.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A rather steep climb in this case<br />
and the ladder just makes it</td></tr>
</tbody></table><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;">The nests are located in large trees of a range of species of all shapes and the height of the nest entrance and depth of cavity vary considerably between groups. Some cavities are fairly easy to access while other provide a particular challenge. This is often where the art of using a ladder comes in. Knowing the exact location and configuration of each nest does help, but it’s not as simple that. Placing the ladder against the tree at the suitable height, ensuring that it is stable before climbing up and other aspects are all standard considerations when using a ladder in the bush. The ladders often need to be carried for some distance to the nest tree and it always helps to have a volunteer or two to accompany you to assist with this.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-invXPlnq_0g/TwZvnjqB9wI/AAAAAAAAARg/v2l0OlqwUQc/s1600/Southern+Ground+Hornbill_AdF+at+nest_Mlambane-nest%252C+KNP_18.11.2010.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-invXPlnq_0g/TwZvnjqB9wI/AAAAAAAAARg/v2l0OlqwUQc/s320/Southern+Ground+Hornbill_AdF+at+nest_Mlambane-nest%252C+KNP_18.11.2010.jpg" width="251" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Female leaving the nest</td></tr>
</tbody></table><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;">Cavities in trees in the African bush are however not just sought after by Ground Hornbills as nesting sites, but are also used by a range of other creatures ranging from diminutive rodents and bush-babies to slightly more tricky customers such as genets, the odd snake ranging from pythons to mambas and a number of other birds such as Barn Owls. So far, we have been fortunate to not encounter anything larger such as leopard. The ability to duck and dive and rapidly descend from a ladder should one of the more aggressive creatures be encountered is often another aspect of ladder use that is often underestimated, especially if it is leaning precariously against the slippery branches of a tree and you are about 12 metres above ground. It is however a skill that is rather quickly acquired should such a situation arise! </span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-eMeiCyWDjyg/TwZrowN0tAI/AAAAAAAAAQk/YMDmsXmb8rM/s1600/Large-spotted+Genet+in+Nesting+Cavity_KNP_19.11.2010.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-eMeiCyWDjyg/TwZrowN0tAI/AAAAAAAAAQk/YMDmsXmb8rM/s320/Large-spotted+Genet+in+Nesting+Cavity_KNP_19.11.2010.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Genet hiding in an old SGH nest</td></tr>
</tbody></table><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;">Once the candling has been done, we keep an eye on specific nests that have been identified for harvesting to ensure that this can happen at the most opportune time. Harvesting generally takes place through December, but is mostly concentrated in the latter half of this month which can play havoc with any festive season plans and arrangements for those concerned! Both harvested and un-harvested nests are monitored thereafter until the nestlings are old enough to ring at about 60 days of age. This takes place from late January to mid-March, depending on when the chicks hatched. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: justify;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HNZIseSSLiE/TwZr_QuMRbI/AAAAAAAAAQw/HeeAKcEX7DM/s1600/Barn+Owls_Lewerik%252C+KNP_21.12.2011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="274" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HNZIseSSLiE/TwZr_QuMRbI/AAAAAAAAAQw/HeeAKcEX7DM/s320/Barn+Owls_Lewerik%252C+KNP_21.12.2011.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Barn Owls flying out of an old SGH nest</td></tr>
</tbody></table><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;">We have to date fitted 17 chicks with colour-rings in the Kruger National Park and have been quite successful in obtaining reports of re-sightings of these birds from visitors to the Park. This number is set to increase considerably in the next three months when this season’s chicks will be ringed. Posters have been placed at a wide range of locations such as entrance gates, reception areas and at restaurants. Please look out for these when you next visit Kruger and please let us know if you do spot any of these birds. Re-sightings of these birds initially provide us with an idea of the home-range of individual groups and will over time hopefully also provide an indication of movement of ringed between groups, especially in the case of evicted females which often leave their natal group when approaching adulthood.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5MZ50eOGWxc/TwZsYqYjEVI/AAAAAAAAAQ8/DeTF7XokW3o/s1600/Fitting+colour-rings_Landanda-nest%252C+KNP_18.2.2011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5MZ50eOGWxc/TwZsYqYjEVI/AAAAAAAAAQ8/DeTF7XokW3o/s320/Fitting+colour-rings_Landanda-nest%252C+KNP_18.2.2011.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Colour-ringing a SGH nestling</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-izLGc4FHh_s/TwZs2vKDMpI/AAAAAAAAARI/nRSRpRoGw_E/s1600/SGH+Ringing+poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="258" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-izLGc4FHh_s/TwZs2vKDMpI/AAAAAAAAARI/nRSRpRoGw_E/s400/SGH+Ringing+poster.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The poster requesting reports of re-sightings</td></tr>
</tbody></table><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;">All of the information gathered will assist us in getting to know these birds better and to hopefully make better-informed decisions in terms of their conservation and the re-introduction into their former range in South Africa. Another exciting recent development with regard to our work in Kruger is the registration of a PhD-project which will look at a range of aspects related to this species such as spatial use and criteria for nest-site selection. Such information learnt from the wild population will further assist and inform a range of decisions with regards to suitable sites for the future re-introduction of the species.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;">Here’s to hoping that the Bigblackblushingchicken remains part of the South African savanna- and grassveld-landscape and that the efforts of the SASGHAG partners assist in the species successfully repopulating a significant part of its former range in the country.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-sCNkPyDEzj4/TwZtTofY5MI/AAAAAAAAARU/Pvq3XMQpFbU/s1600/Southern+Ground+Hornbill_AdF_Jumbo-nest%252C+KNP_19.12.2011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="222" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-sCNkPyDEzj4/TwZtTofY5MI/AAAAAAAAARU/Pvq3XMQpFbU/s400/Southern+Ground+Hornbill_AdF_Jumbo-nest%252C+KNP_19.12.2011.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span><br />
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</div><div align="left"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Andre Bothahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02943491875397061249noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4329314609615100391.post-30577011280641039602009-12-31T15:34:00.002+02:002009-12-31T15:42:21.963+02:002009 - from a personal perspective<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">After just having posted probably one of the most somber postings on my blog, I thought it would be appropriate to do a more personal review of the year that was 2009.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">There is no doubt that the year has been a tough one, but it was also very rewarding in many ways and I have been able to realize and reach a couple of goals over the last 12 months. The year also produced a number of unforgettable memories, mostly associated with my work and travels within southern Africa and further a-field. Oh yes, in the process there were also many new friends made, some regained and, sadly, also a few lost. </span><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Thea continues to be an inspiration and incredible support to me. How she manages to put up with all my nonsense, weird hours and obsessions is beyond me. Perhaps my frequent absences help to make them easier to digest and cope with! After more than 16 years together, we seem to have reached a solution which works for both of us, especially as far as finding fulfillment in our very divergent professional lives are concerned. This year, her dedication, perseverance and hard work in the tough corporate environment has continued to be an inspiration to me and other members of her family. It is great to see the satisfaction that she receives from supporting many members of her family in so many ways, both on an emotional and material level. That includes me, of course!</span><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Although I was planning to travel a lot less in 2009, it turned out to be one of those years where I again spent more time on the road, and sometimes in the air, than previous years with more than 65000km traveled on southern African roads and including trips to East Africa, Botswana, Namibia and South America, some experiences which have been reported on in earlier blogs.</span><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">In fact, the year started off in the Northern Cape with a 10-day trip to the Kgalagadi Trans-frontier Conservation Area which was part of our annual leave and saw Thea visiting the Kalahari for the first time. Although it was extremely hot on most days, we were rewarded by great sightings of most of the large game and great birds during our visit to the area. Two images from that trip will however stay with me for a long time, namely that of a magnificent male lion that we encountered just outside Nossob rest-camp in the late afternoon sun. It posed just perfectly for photographs and looked the way that most people expect lions to look like, in regal command of its entire territory. Quite something coming from someone that doesn’t really have a great affinity for these cats!</span><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The second memory is of the 4 San-children that we encountered on the way to the Kgalagadi TFCA near Ashkam. They were quite used to tourists stopping to purchase trinkets, etc from the stall run by their mother and willingly posed for some images, at a price of course! We were quite surprised by all of them getting rid of most of their clothes to pose for the pictures though! However, their joy of life and excitement about the area they live in was quite contagious and I hope that they will not become too affected by the impacts of tourism in the longer term.</span><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Next was a week-long trip to Kenya in the company of my colleague, Jon Smallie. The aim of the trip was to look at vulture and other raptor conservation and research work being conducted in that country and I’m very happy to report that we were able to get to visit some very special areas, including a Rüppell’s Vulture colony at Kwenia and the Lake Naivasha-area with our good friend, Dr. Munir Virani<span class="skype_name_highlight" id="skype_name_injection_1_16" onmouseover="event.cancelBubble = true; event.returnValue = false;" skypename="munir.virani" style="background-image: url(C:/DOCUME~1/AndreB/LOCALS~1/Temp/__SkypeIEToolbar_Cache/e70d95847a8f5723cfca6b3fd9946506/session/GIF/offline.gif) !important;"> <span class="skype_nh_arrow_hid" id="skype_name_arrow_1_16" skypename="munir.virani" style="background-image: url(C:/DOCUME~1/AndreB/LOCALS~1/Temp/__SkypeIEToolbar_Cache/e70d95847a8f5723cfca6b3fd9946506/session/GIF/arrow.gif) !important;"> </span></span> who hosted us for the entire week. Munir and his family went out of their way to make the trip an interesting and productive one. There were a number of promising initiatives that emenated from this visit and it was also great to meet with and learn from other bird conservationists from that country, especially with Dr. Muchane Muchai, the Head of the National Museums of Kenya who I have worked with before when he did his PhD-study at Wakkerstroom in Mpumalanga in 1999-2000.</span><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Counting Ruppell's Vultures at Kwenia with Muni Virani and Jon Smallie, January 2009</span></strong><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">In late February, I headed north by road via the Trans-Kalahari Highway and Ghanzi in Botswana to attend and chair the AGM of the Game Rangers Association of Africa at Shamvuri in the Caprivi-region of northern Namibia. Good rains had fallen throughout most of southern Africa and it was great to see the veld in such good condition. Of course, the AGM was good fun and it was good to meet with folks from further north. A surprising number of rangers from South Africa also made the pilgrimage up there and more than 80 people eventually attended. The event also included the wedding of ranger Jos Josling, but resulted in me having to miss that of my good friend André Agenbag and his good lady Angela. It was also the first time that the Africa Committee of the GRAA held a mobile meeting. We discussed GRAA matters floating on a large boat on the beautiful Kavango River one afternoon, certainly a first for the normally very terrestrial rangers that are on the Committee! This trip also produced my only southern Africa birding lifer in the form of Schalow’s Turaco which I was able to finally tick on a boat trip from Katima Mulilo with John Turner and Christine Jennings.</span><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Another memory that will stay with me for a long time was the tree-platform on the Kwando River where I spent the Friday night after the AGM courtesy of the arrangements made by Simon Mays who works in the Caprivi National Park that this forms part of. I only pitched my mozzie-net tent and, after enjoying a basic meal of tinned rations, spent the night staring at the thousands of stars and the massive thunderstorms raging to the north over Angola and Zambia while listening to a range of owls, hippo, elephant and other creatures of the night 8m above the ground. Truly a magical experience!</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The last out-of-country trip of the year was by far the most amazing experience of the year and included the fulfillment of a life-long dream to visit at least part of the Amazon in South America. If you are interested to find out more, you are welcome to read the blog titled “Birding and other Adventures on our South American Trip – October/November 2009”. This was done as part of a trip to attend the 6th World Congress of the International Rangers Federation that was held at Santa Cruz de la Sierra in Bolivia in early November. It certainly was great to meet with a large number of rangers from 47 countries to talk about the work we all are so lucky to be involved in and many a new friendship was made. As a South African, it was really great to receive great feedback on the Congress that was held here in 2000 and many people shared their memories of this experience with us. </span><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The field trip during the Congress was also a great experience, especially when the bus we were traveling in got stuck on one of the many log-bridges that traverses streams in this part of the tropical rainforests. Of course, this was not much of a problem and the rangers on board in no time extracted the bus and fixed the bridge before looking for a safer, alternative route to the Amboro National Park. It was here that we saw our first Toucan in the wild and also received more mosquito bites than I thought possible. Of course the itchy effect of these only became evident in the following days and these little buggers make the African version, except for the Anopheles of course, seem rather tame by comparison! The sighting of a magnificent Tarantula at Amboro also was a highlight. I was also honoured to be elected as African Representative to the International Executive of the IRF on the last day and we will be submitting a proposal to host the next Congress in East Africa in 2012/2013.</span><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-size: xx-small;">The Bus, the Bridge and resourceful Rangers on the way to Amboro National Park</span></strong><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Before heading back to South Africa, we also spent three days in Buenos Aires, Argentina. This is a city that I have very pleasant memories of resulting from a visit there in 2001 during a BirdLife International Building on Experience training session and it was good to share some of the sights with Thea. South America has not seen the last of us, I’m sure!</span><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Although it was a difficult year at work due to the ever-present threat of limited financial resources and tough fundraising conditions, I am happy to say that the Birds of Prey Working Group of the Endangered Wildlife Trust has still made good progress on a number of fronts with regard to the conservation, research and monitoring of vultures, other raptors and large birds in the region. We once again hosted a successful Annual Conference at Hlalanathi in the KwaZulu-Natal Drakensberg which was attended by more than 80 people form as far a-field as the UK, Australia and East Africa.</span><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Another highlight of the year was the successful launch of the International Vulture Awareness Day which took place on the 5th of September and involved 155 organisations from 45 countries. The response to the suggestion of such a day, which originated from the annual National Vulture Awareness Day held in South Africa since 2005 and a similar event hosted by The Hawk Conservancy Trust in the UK, we were rather overwhelmed by the global response to such a day this year and look forward to the 4th of September 2010 when the 2nd International Vulture Awareness Day will be held. More information in this regard can be found in several postings on this blog under September 2009. I was also honoured when the EWT presented me with a special award acknowledging my contribution in this regard during its Fieldworkers Week at the end of October. This event also saw the best ever attendance by EWT-BoPWG fieldworkers since its inception and it was great to have a good number of colleagues attend during a time when most of them are very busy with fieldwork.</span><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The Lowveld/Kruger National Park Large Bird Project continues making a significant contribution to the conservation, research and monitoring of a range of species in the Kruger National Park and adjacent Lowveld-region of South Africa. This is a project that was long overdue and that has been a personal goal for many years, finally reaching fruition in late 2007 with the approval of the first of several projects by SANParks enabling us to work in this important conservation area. Scott Ronaldson runs this project for us, but I maintain a very close personal involvement in this initiative, for obvious reasons! In fact, I have been fortunate to undertake at least 16 field trips to Kruger during the last 12 months to participate and, in some cases, lead fieldwork on a number of initiatives.</span><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">As usual, the Savanna Science Network Symposium held in April was a highlight and this coincided with the county’s general elections. Scott and I did a trip to the Shimuwini-area the day before the elections to ring a very late Southern Ground Hornbill in a large Baobab and also surveyed the power-line between the Olifants-river and Satara Rest Camp on our way back to Skukuza. Our findings during this survey has led to Eskom re-assessing that network of power-lines that traverse this National Park and will hopefully lead to substantial improvements from bird mortality-perspective. We also ringed 11 other Southern Ground Hornbills earlier in the season. On one of these days we were accompanied by Section Rangers Don English and Rob Thomson covering nests along the Mbiyamiti and Mlambane rivers in the south. It was great to spend time in the field with good mates doing something that we all enjoyed at a time when the veld was looking at its best. Of course, there was plenty of banter and stories to share. I’m happy to say that both these rangers have had substantial successes in apprehending poachers in their sections over the last 5 weeks or so and it was great to share the tales of their successes during my last visit just before Christmas.</span><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Working with Scott and Don to ring a Ground Hornbill nestling</span><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Our annual survey of the Luvhuvhu- and Olifants rivers in Kruger also went well this year and we received great support from SANParks, Wilderness Safaris and a number of volunteers during June. The Luvhuvhu survey saw two EWT staff members, Alison Janicke and Wendy Collinson as well as Honorary Ranger and good friend Ashraf Sayed participate in the 4 days of walking the river searching for sightings and signs of Pel’s Fishing Owl and other birds that share the riverine habitat. This survey will certainly be remembered for the close shave the team on the southern bank experienced on the last morning when they walked into a less-than-amused female leopard and her cub in the process of taking down a sub-adult waterbuck ewe that they had flushed in her direction! The lightning-fast reaction of one of the Field Rangers who fired a warning shot fortunately was enough to discourage the female from any further action against the team and she dashed off into the undergrowth not to be seen again. As for the waterbuck, she eventually staggered to her feet after a while and took off after the rest of her mates, seemingly none the worst for wear!</span><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-size: xx-small;">The Luvhuvhu River survey team, June 2009</span></strong><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Our Olifants River survey is generally a far bigger operation with two teams each covering one half of the river in Kruger, a distance of about 92kms. I once again led the team covering the western half, stretching from a place known as Wildevyeboom to Mamba Picket on the Parks western boundary. My team was accompanied by Richard Sowry, Section Ranger of the Kingfisherspruit Section in the Park and Colin Rowles, Warden of the Klaserie Private Nature Reserve that borders onto the Park. In addition Cobus Bester and Foeta Krige, friends I have met on the Conservation Outreach and similar trips previously also came along as well as three long-standing mates from my army days, André Agenbag, Johan Nel and Ben van Zijl. We were supported by Thea and her nephew Tim Horak who ensured that our camping equipment were moved daily to new campsites while we walked the river banks on both sides looking for and counting all the fish-eating birds encountered. Apart from stumbling across several large groups of elephant and the odd hippo dozing in the undergrowth, the survey thankfully went off without incident. Even the river crossings by zodiac became rather routine once we got the knack of it.</span><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Crossing the Olifants using a human-propelled zodiac</span></strong><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Another incident worth sharing, albeit at my own cost, happened on my second trip to Kruger this year to do some Ground Hornbill fieldwork. After arriving pretty late on a Monday afternoon in February, I decided to go and have a look at the flow of the Sabie and Sand Rivers outside Skukuza which were flowing quite nicely after the good rains during the previous weeks. Upon arriving at the Sand River and traversing the low-water bridge crossing it, I saw an empty 2 litre cold drink bottle floating in the water right next to some rocks adjacent to the bridge. Some unthinking individual had clearly decided to dump the bottle in the river in the hope that it would be washed downstream by the fast-flowing water. The currents however kept on washing it back toward the rocks and I decided to try an recover it from the water, very conscious of the potential risks, but motivated by the fact that it was important enough to remove this annoying object from a river where it clearly didn’t belong. Getting out of my vehicle, I climbed down onto the rocks and bent down to retrieve the bottle, only to have my feet slip out under me and ending up to my neck in the water for a fraction of a second before recovering my composure and scrambling back onto the rocks and back onto the bridge, empty bottle in hand! Standing there, dripping wet and with copious amounts of adrenalin rushing through my veins, I reflected on the stupidity of my actions! Fortunately, there were no submerged crocs waiting for food at that spot or I would have been history.</span><br />
</div><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Despite incidents like this, I am constantly aware of the immense privilege and responsibility involved in working in protected areas such as Kruger and several other reserves throughout South Africa and beyond on a regular basis. Other moments during the year that also stand out is the day we spent in the hide at Giant’s Castle as part of our attempts to capture Bearded Vultures to fit them with satellite tracking technology to follow their movements. On this day, we saw no less than 11 individual Bearded Vultures, but had no luck at catching them! The team led by Sonja Krüger has however persevered and are currently following the movements of at least 6 Bearded Vultures in the Ukuhlamba-Drakensberg. It is simply an amazing experience working with species like this in some of the most scenic areas of South Africa. </span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Thea and I also attended the Sunset Serenade event, hosted by the Honorary Rangers, and held at Letaba in June this year. It was quite an experience to sit in the African bush at sunset and listen to beautiful classical music being performed by an ensemble of musicians while looking at wildlife coming to drink in the river close to us. It is certainly an amazing event that also contributes to the good work done by rangers in the Kruger and other National Parks. Thanks again to John Turner for inviting us!</span><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Experiences such as these certainly make up for any lack of monetary compensation and have contributed to making the past year another memorable and enjoyable one. As my good friend Johann Oelofse always says, we get paid in sunrises and sunsets, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. There certainly also isn’t any harm in having fun while you’re earning a living and loving what you are doing at the same time! From a birding perspective, I was once again happy to reach the 600 species-mark for southern Africa this year with a total of 641 species during the last 12 months, the third highest total for the region since I started keeping an annual tally. Globally, I managed to reach 997 species thanks to the East African and South American trips, something that I am very chuffed about. Just a pity that it falls short of the 1000-mark! Another milestone reached over the year was achieving more than 60 000 Cybertracker datapoints of birds recorded by reaching a total of 62361 points, something I didn’t quite believe possible when entering the first record on the morning of January 1st.</span><br />
</div><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">On a sadder note, I would also like to remember two colleagues and friends that passed away during the last year. The first of these is Prof. Steven Piper who has been a friend, mentor and colleague for more than 10 years and who passed away after a short illness in March. Steven’s guidance and support in the initial stages of the establishment of the EWT-BoPWG has been invaluable and I will certainly miss his eloquence, wit and love for the vultures he cared for so much. The other friend to have passed away this year is Ben de Boer who owned the Kurisa Moya Nature Lodge near Magoebaskloof and who was making a huge contribution to the development of avitourism and site-based bird guides in Limpopo until his death on the 1st of August. We miss you Ben.</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">All things considered, it has been a busy and tough year. However, it has also been rewarding in many ways and generally a lot of fun! If 2010 contains even half the experiences of 2009, it will be worthwhile.</span><br />
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</div>Andre Bothahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02943491875397061249noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4329314609615100391.post-40448024425534906102009-12-31T10:26:00.003+02:002009-12-31T10:31:09.530+02:00Looking back.....and into the future<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The last day of 2009 is here and many people are heaving a sigh of relief that the year is almost over. From a global perspective, it certainly seems as if this year threw everything bad at humanity. The Global Financial Crisis saw many people lose their livelihoods, jobs and security. The impacts of Global Climate Change were clearly illustrated during several occurrences of extreme and un-seasonal weather-events worldwide which caused loss of life and severe damage to infrastructure and property. The farcical events at Copenhagen underlined the lack of substantive leadership and humanity’s refusal to accept responsibility for and work towards adapting to this phenomenon. It was a sad day when we started quantifying natural resources to the extent where businesses and countries can “trade” their carbon emissions to mollify their conscience that what they are doing is not so bad. The hard-ass approach of developed countries thinking that you can approach this challenge on business principles to win the war by a degree Celsius or two is just as ludicrous as that of developing countries’ government delegates that saw this event as an opportunity to haul out the begging bowl, rather than to face the real challenge to the environment and humanity as we know it. </span><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Society seems to continue on an ever-declining spiral of electing and supporting weak individuals as their leaders and provide media coverage to the lives of people famous for nothing but being famous. We seem to have become fascinated by the mundane and the outrageously boring and to be besotted by appearance rather than the substance and being of the people we are dealing with. </span><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">In South Africa, things weren’t any different and South Africans were entertained by the saga in the run-up to, and the events following the general elections in April. We certainly have elected the government that we deserve and the village idiots from both the left and the right’s ranting and raving have become part of the standard mainstream political fare that was South Africa in 2009. The only challenge is to separate the idiots in charge from the idiots in opposition as they all seem to be preaching from the same podiums and have the same focus, their own self-interest and careers rather than the needs of the electorate. The year also clearly illustrated that loyalty to an individual above all costs can pay handsome dividends with certain questionable individuals having been appointed to key positions in government and the private sector. Our legal system seems to be at a cross-road with questionable decisions on a number of cases characterizing the apparent regression of the independent judiciary to the point of judges prosecuting and contradicting each other in public. </span><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Public services such as healthcare, safety and security, maintenance of infrastructure such as roads, water supply and electricity seem to have reached the point of breakdown in a number of areas. It was quite ironic to see people take to the streets in areas such as Gauteng, Mpumalanga and the Free State to protest against the performance of the same politicians they voted into power only weeks or months before. The apparent aggression and hooliganism that accompanied protests and strikes in many cases have become the norm and, in some cases, brought back vivid images of the riots of the 1980’s. It was indeed a sad day to see the country’s Defence Force soldiers storm the main seat of political power, the Union Buildings in Pretoria (or Tshwane, depending on your angle of political correctness) in their demands for higher wages. It was the only bit of action that most of these soldiers had seen in many years. However, their mutinous actions paid off handsomely when they were awarded substantial pay increases in December!</span><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The Eskom-saga also shows that the South African tax-payer will keep on carrying the brunt of the costs to fulfill the needs of the country whether these needs are realistic and sustainable or not. The lip-service that is currently being paid to finding more sustainable sources of energy while carbon-based energy sources continue to be exploited and expanded upon, is simply untenable and we are already starting to pay the price for this through the environmental impacts that are becoming more and more evident, but that are seemingly being ignored to curry political favour. We would rather prefer to address the crises as they happen than try and prevent them from happening in the first place.</span><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">In the field of conservation, South Africa continues to face an increasing threat of poaching of rhino and other wildlife that is characterized by a more sophisticated approach by the perpetrators that requires an adjustment in our approach to effectively curb it. Although the threat to rhino is the most obvious, issues such as large scale meat-poaching in certain areas and the illegal harvest of vultures, certain plants and other wildlife for the muthi trade is certainly cause for concern. Although we have excellent legislation in place, we need to start enforcing it effectively to ensure the continued existence of our natural heritage. I am however proud to report that rangers and other conservationists have already started making good progress in addressing some of these threats, but a wider approach is needed with better support from the judiciary and other law enforcement agencies. </span><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Several protected areas are also under threat from human activities such as mining and agriculture and areas such as Mapungubwe face losing their character and value as natural and cultural heritage areas due to these. The challenge of conserving our natural heritage in South Africa from the above and other threats is increasingly resting on the shoulders of the NGO-sector. This is a massive challenge considering that most of these organisations depend on donor funding to do the work they are engaged in and that there in most cases are very limited resources to do what’s necessary. There are however still many hard-working and dedicated people in government conservation structures and I believe that greater cooperation between all sectors is the key to achieving success in future. This however needs to extend beyond making encouraging sounds in board rooms and at conferences and meetings and to start implementing effective action to address the various challenges facing conservation in South Africa today. Considering the vested interests and internal politics prevalent in this sector, this is a huge challenge in itself. </span><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">As true South Africans, we often try to find solace in sport and our achievements in this arena over the past year have been mixed to say the least. The Boks did us proud and I have to grudgingly admit that the Bulls also performed well and deserved to make a clean sweep of the competitions that they were involved in. We started the year as the number 1 in Test Cricket and ODI’s, but this has sadly changed during the year to the level where our last test was an embarrassment to say the least. Of course, being humiliated by the Poms on home soil is never an easy pill to swallow, but seemingly capitulating in the face of rather ordinary bowling is something completely unacceptable! Then there was the farcical Caster Semenya-saga – need I say more? </span><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Of course, the 2010 World Cup is considered to be the saviour of us all and is the once-in-a-lifetime event that most Safricans think will solve all our problems and put us back in the global picture from a sporting perspective. Ignoring for a moment the less than encouraging performances of our pride and joy, Bafana-Bafana (why we keep on referring to them as boys when they are expected to play against the real men of world football is beyond me), in the international arena, I do think that this event will indeed be an opportunity for us to showcase South Africa to as large an audience as we had when we made the miraculous transition to democracy in 1994. I trust that the opportunists that have on a number of occasions tried to use the pressing deadlines associated with the event as blackmail to push their case for better wages and other reasons, will not negatively impact on the event in any way and that it will go smoothly.</span><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Question is, what about South Africa after the event when the world’s attention will inevitably drift away from us again? Many people seem to only look at June/July 2010 and have not planned beyond that. What will happen to the many folk who have found employment in various sectors associated with the event, but that will lose their jobs once it has run its course? Will there be outlets where these individuals can apply their acquired skills beyond the World Cup? Will these be sustainable? Unlike a 90-minute football match, or a 6-week event that has a finite life, most of us will have to carry on with our lives afterward and continue to make ends meet. One can only trust that provision has been made for alternatives for these thousands of people. </span><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Now, more than ever, is the time for humanity to look at itself in the mirror and accept responsibility for where we are, warts and all. Time is running out for all of us if we do not face the facts and start acting to address the global and local challenges in the coming months of what will be 2010 and beyond. Humans are wonderfully resilient creatures and I trust that we will start realizing and admitting our mistakes to act timeously to achieve a workable solution to the challenges that we face today. It is never too late…</span><br />
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</div>Andre Bothahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02943491875397061249noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4329314609615100391.post-69261837139005107582009-12-30T14:19:00.000+02:002009-12-30T14:19:30.337+02:00What's with birders and sewage?<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The one activity that probably contributes more than any other to class the dedicated birder as a species somewhat bereft of the usual sensibilities that other human beings possess, is the proclivity to frequent spots which are generally avoided by the reasonable man (or woman). I’m not necessarily referring to areas that host life-threatening dangers such as malaria, aggressive animals or other inhabitants, but places found in or near most developed human settlements, the local town sewage works! The thought of visiting such a facility generally fills most people with a feeling of revulsion and it is not included on the itinerary of too many other leisure activities that I know off. That is, unless you are seriously looking for you know what…</span><br />
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</div></span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">However, the mention of a particular sewage plant to a birder will probably conjure up pleasant memories of time spent wandering between settling ponds looking at the array of birds that can be found there. I am often met with strange looks when arriving in an area and enquiring about the possibility of visiting the local sewage works. These facilities, by their very nature, does provide suitable habitat to a large variety of birds and, because they are generally avoided by people, present a fairly safe location at which birders can pursue their pastime. In fact, several regional rarities have over the years been recorded at just such facilities from the Cape to the Zambezi and beyond. Recent examples of such birds are the <strong>Elegant Tern</strong> that was discovered at the Strandfontein sewage works near Cape Town, the <strong>American Purple Gallinule</strong> found at Paarl as well as <strong>Lesser Jacana</strong> found near Pretoria in October 2007. It is for this very reason that I, just like most other birders, am familiar with the sewage works in a number of locations across the region. Apart from those mentioned above, I can think of at least 20 other facilities that I have regularly visited over the years.</span><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SztCJ_4qnwI/AAAAAAAAAMs/gg-fGb3GozI/s1600-h/Kasane+Sewage+Dam,+Northern+Botswana_December+2007.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ps="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SztCJ_4qnwI/AAAAAAAAAMs/gg-fGb3GozI/s400/Kasane+Sewage+Dam,+Northern+Botswana_December+2007.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-size: xx-small;">The dam at the Kasane Sewage Works</span></strong><br />
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</div></span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">One of these rank as one of my favourite birding spots in all of southern Africa, namely the Kasane Sewage works situated between the small towns of Kasane and Kazangula close to the Chobe River in northern Botswana. Although the Chobe-area is frequented by thousands of tourists from all over the world, the sewage works most certainly is not on any of the local lodges or outfitter’s lists of places not to be missed. I was introduced to the site quite a few years ago by a local lodge manager and keen birder, Rex Kelly, and have since spent many pleasurable hours there, constantly being rewarded with some very special sightings of birds and other wildlife.</span><br />
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</div></span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The area is not fenced and the lower settlement dam which carries the purest water is frequented by good numbers of game. We have at times been surrounded by as many as 200 African elephant, a herd of buffalo and several antelope species including Sable coming to drink here in the late afternoon while a lone hippo bull has for the last few years taken up residence here. One often sees signs of predators such as leopard, lion and spotted hyaena that have visited the site, but it is the birds that make use of the area that certainly warrants the most attention.</span><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SztC63TEZII/AAAAAAAAAM0/5iaTLGRz3e0/s1600-h/_J8W0096_edited-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ps="true" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SztC63TEZII/AAAAAAAAAM0/5iaTLGRz3e0/s400/_J8W0096_edited-1.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><div align="center"><strong><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Scenes like this are not uncommon at the Kasane Sewage Works Dam</span></strong><br />
</div></span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">On a recent visit to the site during December, we spent some time here whilst enjoying sundowners and seeing what interesting birds could be around. The first cause for excitement was a small flock of migratory <strong>Yellow Wagtails</strong> of at least three different races that were foraging in the short grass on an open area near the water. Apart from a range of the expected species of waterbirds and waders, we were initially entertained by the antics of an <strong>African Fish Eagle</strong> seemingly deriving a lot of pleasure out of taking off from a perch and sweeping low over the water to the consternation of all the shorebirds who would fly up and circle a few times before landing only to be chased up in the same manner a short while later. This game was cut short just before dark when the resident <strong>Osprey</strong> returned from its daily tour of the Chobe floodplain and, upon finding a potential fish-eating competitor on its home patch, summarily attacked the eagle by dive-bombing and harassing it in the air until it was forced to fly off towards the river. This bird has been using the dead trees in the lower dam as a roost for several years now and we have regularly encountered it on our visits here.</span><br />
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</div></span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Our attention was soon drawn to a flock of more than a hundred <strong>Collared Pratincoles</strong> hunting insects on the wing over the water and the clearing among the trees. It is an awesome experience to have so many of these birds fly at great speed around you, at times within a few centimeters from your face. Whilst this was going on, they were joined by at least three <strong>Eurasian Hobby Falcons</strong> who were hunting swifts and other small birds over the woodland. These little falcons had arrived a week or two earlier on migration from their breeding grounds in Europe and Asia and seemed very keen on replenishing their resources after the strenuous journey south. This was followed up by the surprise appearance of a <strong>Bat Hawk</strong> that was far more adept at catching swifts as well as bats that started appearing in the growing darkness. The grand finale was provided by an adult male <strong>Pennant-winged Nightjar</strong> that started hawking insects over the water with its long streamers and largely white wing coverts creating the impression of a huge moth sweeping over the area. A few more of these very sought-after birds were seen on the drive back to camp through the Teak forest.</span><br />
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</div></span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">A drive along this same route by day often reveals species such as <strong>Racket-tailed Roller</strong>, <strong>Wood Pipit</strong>, <strong>Red-faced Crombec</strong>, <strong>Striped Kingfisher</strong> and quite a few Sunbird species, especially when the teak trees are in flower.</span><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SztDuZp2bqI/AAAAAAAAAM8/RbvhIX3x-L8/s1600-h/Racket-tailed+Roller_Kwando,+Namibia_21.2.09.1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ps="true" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SztDuZp2bqI/AAAAAAAAAM8/RbvhIX3x-L8/s400/Racket-tailed+Roller_Kwando,+Namibia_21.2.09.1.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Racket-tailed Roller is fairly common in the woodlands surrounding the dam</span></strong><br />
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</div></span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">A mere glance at the list of species above is enough to make any southern African birder’s mouth water. The fact that they would have to visit a place such as the Kasane sewerage works to get to see some of them will certainly not be a deterrent at all and probably adds weight to the saying that one has to tolerate a few caterpillars in order to see the butterflies.</span><br />
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</div></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><div style="text-align: justify;">I again visited the site in February 2009, but was saddened to see that development is starting to encroach on this magical place. Building of a large structure had commenced on the road leading to the site and it seems as if the dam is starting to show the effects of eutrophication with very little clear surface water remaining. The cantankerous hippo bull that was part of the scenery has also since abandoned the site, presumably to take up residence in the nearby Chobe River. I just hope that the development will not hve a negative impact and that carefull management will see the dam become the attracion to wildlife that it used to be.<br />
</div></span>Andre Bothahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02943491875397061249noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4329314609615100391.post-3483916583332620742009-12-30T08:48:00.036+02:002009-12-30T09:04:17.083+02:00Dashing and Endangered - Saddle-billed Stork<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Adult male Saddle-billed Stork walking along a water course in Moremi, Botswana</span></strong><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Possibly one of the most striking birds occurring along the rivers and wetlands of sub-Saharan Africa is the Saddle-billed Stork Ephippiorhynchus senegalensis. In South Africa, this species is classified as “Endangered” and the population estimate for the species 10 years ago was less than 150 individuals. Most of these birds occur in the Kruger National Park with a handful of birds still being recorded in northern Zululand as far south as Lake St Lucia within the Isimangaliso Wetland Park (Barnes, 2000). Further north on the continent it is also never common as it is not a gregarious bird like other most other storks are and its territoriality limits the number of birds that can occur, even in large areas of suitable habitat.</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Suitable habitat for this species consists of aquatic habitats in open country, where they favour large rivers, freshwater wetlands and floodplains. In Kruger these birds are found along the large river systems and a few large man-made water reservoirs for most of the year, but in years of good rainfall, are quick to exploit the numerous seasonal pans and seeps that form in many areas and where a host of aquatic prey species abound under these temporarily favourable conditions. As mentioned, they feed mostly on aquatic animals and are capable fishermen that can take fish-prey up to 2kg! </span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Unlike most other southern African stork species, it is fairly easy to separate the male from the female of a pair in the field. Adult females have a bright yellow eye while males have a dark red eye and two yellow wattles at the base of the bill. It is also possible to identify individual birds from each other by looking at the pattern on the bill where the red and black meet. This seems to be unique in each bird, similar to fingerprints in humans. One does however need to get really close to the birds to be able to do this.</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/Szr1hkySF1I/AAAAAAAAAMM/-0eclV7BnDI/s1600-h/Saddle-billed+Stork_AdM_LH+side_Mbiyamiti,+KNP_20.12.09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" ps="true" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/Szr1hkySF1I/AAAAAAAAAMM/-0eclV7BnDI/s320/Saddle-billed+Stork_AdM_LH+side_Mbiyamiti,+KNP_20.12.09.jpg" /></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/Szr1ZgbE_HI/AAAAAAAAAME/pD00FFcpQpE/s1600-h/Saddle-billed+Stork_AdM_LH+face_Near+Manzimhlope,+KNP_6.12.09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ps="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/Szr1ZgbE_HI/AAAAAAAAAME/pD00FFcpQpE/s320/Saddle-billed+Stork_AdM_LH+face_Near+Manzimhlope,+KNP_6.12.09.jpg" /></a><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><strong><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Two male Saddle-billed Storks from the Kruger National Park clearly showing the unique patterning on their bills that facilitates individual identification of birds. The bird on the lft is one of a pair found near Manzinhlophe during the survey while the bird on the right was located on the Mbiyamiti two weeks later. No pair could be found at Mbiyamiti during the survey.</span></strong><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">It is this technique which forms an important component of our population study of this species in the Kruger National Park, run by Marcelle van den Hoven, a BTech-student from the Tshwane University of Technology. The study will run from October 2009 – September 2010 and visitors to the Park are encouraged to assist in this study by contributing images and details of sightings of these birds to the database. Feedback and details of sightings can be e-mailed to <a href="mailto:storks@ewt.org.za">storks@ewt.org.za</a> </span><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The initial response from the public has been very good and a lot of data on sightings have been received, some with really good quality images that will assist in identifying individual birds. We also conducted a survey of the southern half of the Kruger National Park during early December 2009 using 5 teams of observers that covered over 3000km over the 3 days of the survey. Due to excessive rain in the area in the preceding 2 weeks, a multitude of little pans had formed in the veld making observations very difficult and initial results were rather poor due to the fact that the birds abandoned their usual haunts along the major rivers and were now concentrating their foraging on these pans. This made them rather tricky to find!</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">An interesting development regarding the survey was an e-mail sent to the SABirdNet by a Canadian birder that visited the Kruger Park during October 2009. He had seen pairs of Saddle-billed Storks on 4 occasions during his 3-day visit and had sent the information to the database. However, he questioned the accuracy of the figures of the population status of the species quoted on the posters and pamphlets of the survey that have been put up across the Park and are available at most reception areas, gates and shops. According to his calculations, that took into account the entire size of the Park and the road network that traverses it, he estimated that the population in Kruger alone should exceed 4000 birds! To add insult to wild assumption, he also accused the Project and the parties involved in it of dishonesty and blowing the status of the species out of proportion to suit their own needs. </span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">After my initial reply to the individual quoting the Red Data Book of Birds of South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland (Barnes, 2000) confirming the status and underlining the low density of this species throughout its range, I received a direct reply from the individual concerned that indicated his refusal to accept this and expanding on his theory that the species is far more numerous than what is believed. This was my second reply to the individual concerned:</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">“Dear XXX</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Thanks for the reply.</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">I would be very interested to hear on what factual information you base your suggestion that there could be 4000+ individual SBS in Kruger. It is very difficult to base population estimates on a very small number of sightings from a limited number of individuals and on the incorrect assumption that the entire Kruger provides suitable habitat for this species. Hence our project which aims to obtain more extensive records on this species and ideally would like to reach a point where we can individually identify birds in the population. Considering that the majority of tourist routes in Kruger were developed in proximity to the river systems and larger drainage lines which could potentially provide habitat for this species, there could also be considerable bias towards the likelihood of seeing this species.</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Please keep in mind that the population of SBS in Kruger and elsewhere is influenced by a range of factors which severely limits their distribution to a fraction of the entire Park, namely:</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">• Although this species occurs widely throughout sub-Saharan Africa (apart from the arid south-west), it is nowhere considered to be numerous.</span><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">• Even in extensive suitable habitat, its territoriality and solitary nesting habits contribute to the fact that they are nowhere abundant. They are very different to most other storks species due to the fact that they are not gregarious and sightings of more than 2 birds together are very likely that of a pair with their offspring.</span><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">• Available habitat in Kruger is restricted to riverine areas. Seasonal pans and seeps are only accessible in years of sufficient rainfall and does not provide suitable foraging areas throughout the year.</span><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">• The seasonal nature of the flow of most of the smaller rivers and streams in Kruger severely limits the accessible habitat for this species. This is especially important when it should be considered that such systems will need to function as foraging areas during the breeding season which mostly occurs during the dry season in Kruger when the demand for food with this species would possible be highest. </span><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">• Several of the larger rivers are also not flowing throughout the year anymore due to a number of factors, mostly induced by human activities further up-stream. This further reduces suitable habitat and feeding opportunities for breeding birds in this area. For example, one of the major rivers in the Park is the Olifants. Our annual surveys (2006-2009) of fish-eating birds along the 92kms of this river that runs through Kruger shows that there are at most 3 pairs that occur along it. </span><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">• If you extrapolate this figure to the available suitable habitat in Kruger, it is highly unlikely that you will get to the figure you have quoted.</span><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">• Alan Kemp and his team conducted an aerial census of the entire Kruger in 1993 that revealed a total of 40 adults and 17 juveniles and sub-adults (like the bird in your photograph). That’s a little less than 2% of your estimate. We do plan to repeat this census this coming dry season and, hopefully, for a number of years to come. Will keep you posted on results.</span><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">• Subsequent records and surveys have revealed at total of 20 active nesting sites of this species in Kruger in 1993 (Benn et al, 1995). We are hoping to acquire more current data in this regard during the coming months, but it is unlikely that there would have been a marked increase in the number of breeding sites in the Park, especially if you consider the current ecological status of rivers in the Kruger.</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Based on the above, the estimate of a 100 individuals in Kruger is probably optimistic.</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">There are several references available to support the above, but I suggest that you work through the texts of the following for a start:</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">• Hancock, J.A., Kushlan, J.A. & Kahl, M.P. 1992, Storks, Ibises and Spoonbills of the World. Academic Press.</span><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">• Barnes, K.N. (ed.) 2000. The Eskom Red Data Book of Birds of South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland. BirdLife SA/ADU.</span><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">• Hockey, P.A.R., Dear W.R.J. & Ryan, P.G. (eds.) 2005. Roberts Birds of Southern Africa. 7th edition. John Voelcker Bird Book Fund. </span><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">• Renshaw, E. 1993. Modelling Biological Populations in Space and Time. Cambridge University Press.</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Please let me know if you have any further queries on this matter.</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Regards</span><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">André Botha”</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Unfortunately, this misconception is not uncommon with species such as the Saddle-billed Stork and several more of the birds that we work with. Even experienced birders are sometimes lured into to the illusion that some species are more common than what they in reality are. Rarity and scale of threat cannot be attributed to a species based on a handful of sightings or the ease with which it is found. </span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">An excellent example of this is the Taita Falcon Falco fasciinucha. Most birders in South Africa know that a pair of these birds breed just west of the Strijdom-tunnel on the way to the Lowveld, a site looked after by one of the BirdLife-trained guides, Michael Kumako. On most days, it is possible to have good views of these birds within about 30 minutes of your arrival and most birders that have visited this part of Africa and ticked this species off their lists, probably saw them here. What people don’t realize however is that this is one of only 7 breeding pairs of this bird in the country and that they are nowhere common throughout their very scattered range in Africa. In fact, this is easily the rarest of all breeding birds in South Africa!</span><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Taita Falcon - one of the rarest breeding birds in South Africa</span></strong><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Further details on the activities and findings of the Saddle-billed Stork Survey of the Kruger National Park will be provided in due course.</span><br />
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</div>Andre Bothahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02943491875397061249noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4329314609615100391.post-58175448525267469582009-12-19T06:47:00.000+02:002009-12-19T06:47:34.099+02:00One farmers attitude can make a difference - Kempenfeldt Vulture Feeding Site<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">About 3½ years ago, I was approached by a farmer from the Dundee district in KwaZulu-Natal, Mynhardt Sadie. He was looking for information on how to establish a vulture feeding site on his farm, about 20km outside of town in the northern parts of this province in eastern South Africa. I duly sent him the appropriate information and, in answer to his question about the odds of birds making use of the site, was very conservative in my reply by saying that it is almost always worth trying to establish a site, but that there were no guarantees that birds may in fact make use of it. This was especially relevant considering the fact that, at the time, he had seen only a few birds flying over the area and, on a few occasions, had seen small numbers of vultures feeding on dead livestock carcasses in the district.</span><br />
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</div></span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">This approach seemed to be supported when colleague Sonja Krüger, other staff from Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife and I visited the site in April 2007 to assess the possible use of canon-nets in the capture of vultures as part of our colour-marking initiative in southern Africa. We spent two frustrating days at the site waiting at the comfortable chalet Mynhardt had built as weekend accommodation for visitors for very little to happen. The idea was that the vultures would come and feed at the food placed out for them and where the canon-nets were set up and ready to fire, thereby capturing them. The closest we ever got to this, was when two vultures lazily drifted by quite high not be seen again. Mynhardt’s reassurances that he had as many as 50 birds feeding at the site before, didn’t sound very convincing and we left the site with no luck and fixed thoughts of looking for other sites where we could attempt to capture birds in the province.</span><br />
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</div></span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The interim period had seen attempts to construct capture enclosures at two more sites in the province, namely the Ithala Game Reserve in Zululand and at Monk’s Cowl in the Ukuhlamba-Drakensberg. The Ithala enclosure had to be dismantled after a few months due to the fact that the resident Bushpig <em>Potamochoerus larvatus</em>, Warthog <em>Phacochoeros africanus</em> and White Rhino <em>Ceratotherium simum</em> took more than a glancing interest in the structure and seemed hell-bent on creating as many holes in the diamond mesh fencing that it was covered with as possible. The hogs had of course quickly acquired a taste for the meat placed out for the vultures, but were to dim to find their way out of the enclosure once they have entered and fed. The Rhino more than likely just didn’t enjoy the presence of a man-made structure within its territory and tried its best to break it down!</span><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><strong>The photograph rumoured to have led to the failure of one of our mass-capture attempts. </strong></span><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><strong>I just couldn't help </strong></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><strong><span style="font-size: xx-small;">myself!</span><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">At Monk’s Cowl there were no such problems, except that it was a very new feeding site and that the birds were very reluctant to come down and feed every time we had made preparations for a capture. I’m quite sure that Sonja still blames one failure on my camera shutter when I just couldn’t resist taking a picture of the only Cape Vulture <em>Gyps coprothere</em>s to venture close enough to the site after three days of nothing happening! This site has up to now still not produced good numbers and the capture enclosure there has also been taken down.</span><br />
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</div></span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">It was therefore with some reluctance that I again accepted an invitation from Mynhardt to visit his farm in late July this year. He has been sending me records of tagged birds that he recorded feeding at the site since January this year and it included birds tagged in Swaziland and the Zululand reserves as well as two birds tagged by myself at Moholoholo in the Lowveld about two years earlier. He also mentioned that more than 200 birds at a time come to feed there and that a lot of these have started using the trees on his property as roosts, never moving too far away from the feeding site. Well, seeing is believing and I arranged to meet Mynhardt and Sonja at Kempenfeldt to have a look at whether the site did indeed have to potential to be used as a capture site.</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><br />
</span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Upon my arrival, the first obvious change that I could note was that a fairly substantial structure had been erected close to the feeding site. Upon closer inspection, I realized that it was a hide that was completed since our last visit there more than a year before. Not being able to enter the hide, I had to be satisfied with a quick inspection from the outside during which I also noticed a small group of about 15 vultures relaxing in front of the hide where food is normally placed out for them. There was also a good number of rather vocal White-necked Ravens <em>Corvus albicollis</em> perched and flying about. Heading up the hill and arriving at the chalet, it was obvious that more hard work had gone into this structure to make it even more comfortable for visitors. It is quite impressive that Mynhardt had developed the site and made all of these improvements out of his own pocket and due to his love and respect for vultures!</span><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">The Rolls Royce of Vulture Hides in South Africa - Kempenfeldts pride and joy!</span></strong><br />
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</span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Here I also met Keith Roberts, a good friend of Sonja’s, for the first time. Keith used to work at EKZNW, but relocated to the Friedkin Conservation Fund’s project in Tanzania where he has been working for several years. We started talking about various issues related to conservation in East- and Southern Africa, but one of the main topics of discussion was the set of photographs that he had sent through to us a few months earlier of large numbers of vultures that had been poisoned in the Serengeti. This inevitably led to a discussion on the harvest of vultures for muthi and related issues and Keith agreed to be on the look-out for incidents and evidence that could possibly confirm that this was also happening in Tanzania. The subsequent evidence that he and his staff, together with other conservationists in East Africa have unearthed has been reported on earlier and sketches a rather bleak picture of the situation there.~</span><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> </span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">We agreed to get to the hide before first light the next morning to ensure that we get there before any of the birds would be there. Mynhardt had already placed fresh carcasses at the feeding site and things were looking rather good for us to see some birds at least. Even the sub-zero temperatures of the early July morning couldn’t dampen our spirits, especially when Mynhardt introduced us to the great facilities inside the hide that he had built with such care and consideration. Apart from the separate WC facilities that include a flushing toilet, the spacious hide also has a little kitchen where you can brew a decent pot of coffee to have with some rusks while waiting for the birds to arrive. In addition to comfortable seating in front of the viewing windows, there is also a cane lounge suite towards the back where one can sit and relax when viewing the birds becomes a bit of a chore. Three photographic ports also round off the facility and it was through any one of these which I spent the next 5 hours staring in amazement through my camera lenses at the scene in front of me.</span><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> </span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">It turns out that Mynhardt was rather modest in his estimate of the number of birds that visit the site and we were entertained by almost 350 birds on the day! Needless to say, my camera worked overtime and I was a little concerned that I may run out of either memory card or batteries at some stage! One of the photographs from that day was recently accepted for use on the Mazda Wildlife Fund 2010 calendar. </span><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SyxXJIlv-mI/AAAAAAAAALU/iclvqw3QkJg/s1600-h/Cape+Vulture_SAd_Kempenfeldt,+KZN_3.7.09.7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ps="true" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SyxXJIlv-mI/AAAAAAAAALU/iclvqw3QkJg/s400/Cape+Vulture_SAd_Kempenfeldt,+KZN_3.7.09.7.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><strong>One of many pictures taken on the day. Sub-adult Cape Vulture <em>Gyps coprotheres</em> landing</strong></span><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS; font-size: xx-small;">at the feeding site. </span></strong><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The outstanding feature of the site, apart from the fact that we saw no less than 3 species of vulture namely Cape-, African White-backed <em>Gyps africanus</em> and Lappet-faced <em>Aegypus tracheliotus</em>, was that the vast majority of the birds feeding there were juvenile and immature birds. This site probably plays a vital role in providing a safe and reliable source of food to birds from Zululand, the Drakensberg and even further afield in the first few years after fledging, a time when many of them succumb due to the lack of food and safe areas to forage. Mynhardt also manages the site very carefully and ensures that there is no excessive build-up of bones and other un-used parts from carcasses that are not used by the birds. Bones are either physically removed or stock-piled and then burnt to remove them. This is often a major challenge at other long-running sites and it is good to see that he has come up with a workable solution to this problem.</span><br />
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</div></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SyxYAwHUOvI/AAAAAAAAALc/8f6kr1F6uj8/s1600-h/Bone+piles%2BKempenfeldt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ps="true" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SyxYAwHUOvI/AAAAAAAAALc/8f6kr1F6uj8/s400/Bone+piles%2BKempenfeldt.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Bone-piles like this tend to rapidly grow at an active, well-supplied vulture feeding site</span></strong><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-size: xx-small;">and needs to be carefully managed</span></strong><br />
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</span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Our discussions soon turned to the possibility of erecting a capture enclosure at the site to attempt a first successful mass-capture of vultures in Kwazulu-Natal. Mynhardt was happy to also take up the challenge to construct a suitable enclosure according to prescribed guidelines over the next few months to enable a first attempt at the capture of vultures in the early summer of 2009. I sent through several plans and designs already in use and left him to work out the best option for the site.</span><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> </span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The next bit of feedback with regard to birds feeding at Kempenfeldt, came from supporters of the International Vulture Awareness Day that visited the site on the 5th of September 2009 to participate in the day’s activities by counting the birds that came to feed there. Once again, there were good numbers of birds present and the average estimate on the two days was in excess of 450 vultures! Of particular interest was the sighting of an African White-backed Vulture with tag number K374 observed feeding among the other vultures. This bird was tagged in the nest by Abrie Maritz near Vanzylsrus in the southern Kalahari of the Northern Cape, about 900km to the west of Kempenfeldt and is the first ever recorded movement of a vulture from there to Kwazulu-Natal! You can read more about this sighting and other experiences at Kempenfeldt over that weekend by clicking on Johan Janse van Rensburg’s blog: </span><a href="http://globatbirdtrekkers.org.content/view/591/1/"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">http://globatbirdtrekkers.org.content/view/591/1/</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> </span><br />
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</div></span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">My next visit to Kempenfeldt was a quick overnight stop in mid-October on my way to Zululand to assist with the ringing and tagging of vulture nestlings. It was quite a novel experience staying in the chalet on my own for the first time, something which I celebrated by walking into a closed glass sliding door while talking to the missus on the phone. Ouch! Certainly a good thing that no one was there to witness my stupidity, or hear the rich language resulting from it afterwards… and I can’t even blame the beer for this one!</span><br />
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</div></span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The aim of the visit was to have a look at the progress that was made with the capture enclosure and to see how the vultures reacted to it. Needless to say, my 5-hour wait in the hide the next morning didn’t yield a single vulture despite there being lots of food for them to feed on and several birds being seen circling above the site before heading off! It was obvious on my arrival the previous afternoon that some birds must be feeding on a carcass on the farm next door and it must have been this source of food that received priority on the day. However, the time spent there was not completely wasted as I was entertained by the antics of the 3 Yellow-billed Kites <em>Milvus aegyptius</em> and their altercations with the numerous Pied Crows Corvus albus around the carcasses. The stately manner of the 15-odd Sacred Ibis <em>Threskiornis aethiopicus</em> looking for insect prey among the carcasses were also worth a second look and the perfect light for photography wasn’t entirely wasted. Mynhardt and I agreed to make a final decision on whether we would attempt a capture this year upon my return from the International Rangers Federation Congress in Bolivia.</span><br />
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</div></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SyxY0ehlS-I/AAAAAAAAALk/E6M5Mlexrwo/s1600-h/Yellow-billed+Kite_Kempenfeldt_16.10.09.2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ps="true" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SyxY0ehlS-I/AAAAAAAAALk/E6M5Mlexrwo/s400/Yellow-billed+Kite_Kempenfeldt_16.10.09.2.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">The antics and interactions between Yellow-billed Kites <em>Milvus aegyptius</em> and Pied Crows</span></strong><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Corvus albus </em>provid excellent entertainment <em>in lieu</em> of vultures!</span></strong><br />
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</span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The phone call to hear what conditions were like at the site was one of the first things I did as we were driving home from the airport on the 12th of November 2009. Mynhardt was fairly confident that we should go ahead with the effort as the birds apparently readily went into the enclosure to feed. We confirmed arrangements with Ben and Shannon Hoffman and other volunteers to meet us at Kempenfeldt on the 16th of November to attempt a capture the following morning. I left Johannesburg in sweltering conditions, but was a little bit worried about the forecast of cold and blustery conditions over the KZN Midlands for the week.</span><br />
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</div></span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The forecast for once was accurate and, as soon as I descended the pass between Memel and Newcastle, low cloud and drizzle greeted me on the way to Dundee. I arrived at Kempenfeldt with most of the volunteers already there. Sonja Krüger was not able to be there for our effort this time around as she was still in Europe on her way back from the World Wilderness Congress in Mexico. Her colleague, Rickert van der Westhuizen, was however already there and we prepared the equipment for the next day. Also present was Rina Pretorius, her son and Sylva Francis from Newcastle. Both Rina and Sylva are qualified bird ringers and have expressed an interest in participating in a vulture ringing and tagging exercise for several months and this was probably the best opportunity they would have to achieve this. Phillip Lennon, a television producer from Gauteng who has been filming the work Sonja and some other EWT-BoPWG fieldworkers and associates have been doing over the last 2 years also made the trek with the aim of filming the capture and tagging process. Due to limited space in the chalet, some folks had to camp and several small tents were erected on the lawns outside and even the veranda was converted into a camping site!</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><br />
</span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The most promising sign of possible success however was the presence of 50-odd vultures at the feeding site when I arrived. Some birds were actually sitting on the cage, preening themselves! Mynhardt and I, together with some members of the team went down to the capture enclosure just before dark to place fresh meat inside and in front of it. We also tested the gate mechanism and I decided to walk to the hide before first light the next morning to ensure that no vehicles were parked close to the hide and that no human presence was obvious that could prevent the birds from coming to feed. Mynhardt agreed to drive from home and meet me there at 04:15 am the next morning. We also conducted a thorough briefing process about the capture protocol that evening to ensure that everyone was prepared and ready for the next day. The only factor not in our favour was the weather with a stiff breeze and intermittent rain occurring through the night.</span><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> </span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Despite this, I woke at 3am and made final preparations to walk to the hide. One of the more important things to take along was a bottle of coffee as I did not want to use the stove in the hide to boil water as this could possibly scare the birds off. Rina’s son joined me and we walked down to the hide to get there well before first light. The overcast conditions worked in our favour and we were able to inspect the capture enclosure to make sure that most of the meat placed out for the vultures was still there. The local bushpig and Black-backed Jackal Canis mesomelas had however done the rounds the night before and we had to search the surrounding area to recover some of the pieces of meat and bring it back to the enclosure. After this was done, we retreated back to the hide for the expected long wait for the birds to arrive. </span><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> </span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">We had agreed the night before that the rest of the team could relax back at the chalet until we warned them by radio that vultures had started feeding and that the capture would go ahead. We didn’t have too long to wait as the first vulture flew from the roost trees to land close to the feeding site just as it got light at about 05:25 to be followed by several others over the next 10 minutes or so. It wasn’t long before the first bird, a recent fledgling African White-backed Vulture, landed at the meat and started to feed on a piece of meat placed right in front of the door of the enclosure. In no time, about 70 vultures had descended on the food and commenced feeding, rapidly finishing the meat placed outside the enclosure. </span><br />
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</div></span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">I frantically tried to reach the rest of the team by radio to warn them that the capture was likely to take place a lot earlier than what we initially anticipated, but struggled to reach them by radio. Fortunately cellular phone technology came to the rescue and I was able to make contact. I can just imagine the mad scramble back at the chalet as people jumped out of bed and rushed to get ready for the big moment. I also tried to phone Alex Wood, the EKZNW District Conservation Officer for Vryheid, who was very keen to participate and planned to bring some of his Field Rangers to lend a hand during the capture. He sounded quite alarmed when I told him that a capture was imminent and it wasn’t even 6 o’clock in the morning!</span><br />
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</div></span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Once most of the meat outside of the enclosure had been depleted, the vultures started eyeing the food inside and a group of about 50 birds converged in front of the entrance, egging each other on to enter the enclosure and start feeding. One youngster at last couldn’t resist and gingerly entered and started to feed on the food closest to the entrance only to rush out at the slightest bit of disturbance. It eventually settled down to feed and moved deeper into the enclosure. It didn’t take long for the other birds to be convinced and within 5 minutes there was a good number of birds that had crossed the threshold and were now feeding inside.</span><br />
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</div></span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Once we had determined that the rest of the team was ready and in position, we sprung the trap and a good number of vultures were successfully caught in the enclosure! After the trap was sprung, it required a mad dash down to the enclosure to secure it and prevent any of the captured birds to escape. After this was done, I entered the cage to remove the single African Sacred Ibis and about 9 Pied Crows that were also captured. These were released immediately, but not before the Ibis had a go at my face with its long bill and drew some blood. I suppose every sport has its injuries! </span><br />
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</div></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SyxZ3RvjcQI/AAAAAAAAALs/7AIMdmDtxbs/s1600-h/Gotcha_Vultures+in+Capture+Cage_Kempenfeldt,+Dundee_17.11.09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ps="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SyxZ3RvjcQI/AAAAAAAAALs/7AIMdmDtxbs/s400/Gotcha_Vultures+in+Capture+Cage_Kempenfeldt,+Dundee_17.11.09.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Gotcha!The first vultures to be caught successfully in KZN using a mass-capure facility</span></strong><br />
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</div></span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">I counted 33 vultures in the capture enclosure and was relieved that we finally managed to successfully capture a good number of vultures in KZN. One of the captured birds carried tags with the number S023 which indicates that it was ringed and tagged in the nest in Swaziland in 2007. It was a good opportunity to inspect the tags and the bird’s condition before releasing it and I’m happy to say that it was in very good health. By this time, the rest of the team had arrived and erected a gazebo to provide some shelter from the elements while we were processing the birds. One of the main aims of this particular exercise was to train the volunteers in the capture, handling, ringing and tagging of vultures during a mass-capture and we spent the next three hours working on this. As with most training, it is a rather time-consuming process and we only managed to process 16 of the birds before the weather closed in and we decided to release the remainder of the birds before they got too wet and couldn’t get off the ground.</span><br />
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</div></span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Despite the fact that we couldn’t finish the process, it was still great to finally have achieved what we have been working for so many months to achieve. Most rewarding for me was to see the quiet satisfaction, relief and joy on Mynhardt’s face once we had let the remainder of the birds go and could finally say that we had done it. It was the cherry on top of at least two years of hard work in setting up the feeding site and we cannot thank him enough for his perseverance and hard work in making this possible. He had certainly proved that one man can make a difference and I am sure that this site will prove to be an important staging area for immature vultures in years to come. It was agreed to attempt another capture early in 2010 and I look forward to getting back to Kempenfeldt in January, hopefully to capture and tag more birds.</span><br />
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</div></span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Ben and Shannon decided to stay at the site one more night and spent most of that time in the hide to do observations of the vultures feeding on the new batch of food that Mynhardt provided after the capture. No less than 8 of the 16 newly tagged birds returned to feed at the site within 24 hours, two of whom went right into the enclosure to get to the food. It didn’t seem as if the capture process had deterred them from feeding at the site at all!</span><br />
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</div></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/Syxac15uKvI/AAAAAAAAAL0/t0sKlQng7rE/s1600-h/1st+KZN+Mass-capture_Kempenfeldt,+Dundee_17.11.09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ps="true" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/Syxac15uKvI/AAAAAAAAAL0/t0sKlQng7rE/s400/1st+KZN+Mass-capture_Kempenfeldt,+Dundee_17.11.09.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">The team involved n the first successful mass-capture of vultures in KZN. Mynhardt Sadie</span></strong><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-size: xx-small;">is kneeling second from the left</span></strong><br />
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</span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The development of the site was done with the primary aim of providing food to vultures foraging in the area. I do however believe that, with the excellent facilities that Mynhardt has created, it is probably one of the best sites in southern Africa where people can come to observe and photograph a good range of vulture species in a great setting. With a few minor adjustments, the hide can potentially become the best option for photographers who wish to acquire great photographs of vultures in a range of ages and plumages. The other birds at the site are also worth a second look and there is a good range of different habitats for the keen birder to explore. If you would like to book your visit to the site, please contact Mynhardt Sadie at </span><a href="mailto:vulturehide@gmail.com"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">vulturehide@gmail.com</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> or 079 877 5396.</span><br />
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</div>Andre Bothahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02943491875397061249noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4329314609615100391.post-39491757107928500532009-12-18T07:24:00.002+02:002009-12-18T07:40:44.480+02:00Why is the neighbourhood so quiet now?<div align="justify"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Have you ever wondered what it would be like when the people living in your neighbourhood, many of whom may be your close friends and/or relatives, start disappearing from the area without explanation, never to return? As naturally gregarious creatures, human beings seem to mostly prefer the proximity of other people and often depend on those around them for friendship, support, acknowledgement, love and, at times, a livelihood. It is therefore a fairly logical assumption that, should the above scenario become a reality, it would have a profound effect on anyone affected by such a phenomenon. Should such disappearances continue, it is very likely that the remaining people living in such an area will abandon it altogether to settle elsewhere where conditions are generally more favourable.</span><br />
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</div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Imagine if some super-sleuth started to investigate the disappearances and found that they can be ascribed to several mass-killings of those around you, mainly for the sale of their body parts in the illegal trade? Now that is very likely to elicit a flood of media exposure, Hollywood will probably be lining up to do B-grade movie deals to make millions and it would be recorded in the annals of high-profile macabre incidents for posterity. Suffice it to say that, should the perpetrators ever be caught and brought to justice, that there will be little mercy shown and that the maximum sentence would be handed down. That is, of course, if humans were involved.</span><br />
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</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Now picture the following…<br />
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<div align="justify"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">A pair of African White-backed Vultures <em>Gyps africanus</em> has been nesting in the savanna of northern Zululand for many years as part of a loose congregation of about 24 active nests, most of which occur within the relative safety of a proclaimed nature reserve. These birds are gregarious and several individuals often forage together and constantly watch each other for clues as to where good sources of food can be found. It is also very likely that, should a bird be fortunate enough to reach breeding age and conditions are favourable in their natal area, they would pair up and settle with their mate to breed within the same area they have fledged from. These groups of birds are also likely to have one or more favourite waterhole within close proximity to their nesting sites where they spend quite a bit of time to drink, bathe and socialize with other vultures. This can easily be compared to your local pub, where you and your mates often get together to catch up and have a few!</span><br />
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<div align="justify"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Back to the pair of nesting birds. Their nest is situated in the top of a Knob-thorn Acacia Acacia nigrescens, about 20m above the ground. Due to the height of the tree and its rough bark, sturdy branches and very thorny stems, the tree forms a safe and stable platform for the nest which they have built from sticks. The nest is out of reach of most terrestrial predators and has been instrumental in the pair successfully raising a single chick every year for the last 11 years. It also has quite a spectacular view of the surrounding savanna, a mountain range to the east and the small bay in the nearby dam which they and the other vultures use as the local “social club”. </span><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SysTIehszEI/AAAAAAAAAKk/Lhmi6aEvjds/s1600-h/View+from+nest_Pongola+NR_20.10.09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ps="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SysTIehszEI/AAAAAAAAAKk/Lhmi6aEvjds/s400/View+from+nest_Pongola+NR_20.10.09.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><strong>A view from the nest of the pair of African White-backed Vultures</strong></span><br />
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</div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">From here, they also have visual contact with at least seven other vulture nests, including one that used to be occupied by the much rarer White-headed Vulture Aegypus occipitalis pair which they have encountered on a number of occasions at carcasses and the drinking/bathing spot. “Used to be occupied” is sadly the appropriate term for at least 5 of these nests as the pairs that made use of them seem to have disappeared over the last 3 breeding seasons or so. This includes the pair of White-headed Vultures. In some cases, the birds went missing during the breeding season, leaving their chicks to eventually starve in the nests. In one instance, only one bird of a pair disappeared, but the task of providing food for itself and the chick in the nest was too much to ask and the chick eventually starved anyway. This adult seems to have moved away from the area as it hasn’t been seen in the area for many months now. Most of the nests have since collapsed, but some of the really sturdy ones still sit proudly on top of the trees on which they were built, but now are stark reminders of a once thriving congregation of breeding vultures.</span><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SysToK_ZNOI/AAAAAAAAAKs/lnzbsUa5ZDQ/s1600-h/African+White-backed+Vulture_Nest_Pongola+NR_20.10.09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ps="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SysToK_ZNOI/AAAAAAAAAKs/lnzbsUa5ZDQ/s400/African+White-backed+Vulture_Nest_Pongola+NR_20.10.09.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Many nests, like this one, are still intact but no longer in use</span></strong><br />
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</div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">If you thought that the above scenario is just a figment of the imagination, I am sorry to disappoint you. During our annual vulture colour-marking initiative in southern Africa in October this year, I was fortunate to spend almost 2 weeks in northern Zululand working with staff from Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife (EKZNW) on three of their reserves to visit vulture nests with the aim of fitting rings and tags to nestlings to follow their dispersal and movements after they have fledged. Due to logistical hitches and inclement weather, efforts on two of the reserves amounted to little more than a frustrating wait for not much to happen. It was however fantastic to see the first decent rains of the season fall in the area and seeing the Mkhuze river come down in flood for the first time in several years was certainly rewarding.</span><br />
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<div align="justify">Conditions however sufficiently improved toward the end of the trip to enable us to get to work and a team of 12 people, including a crew from Eskom with one of their cherry-picker trucks finally were able to move into an area close to the Swaziland-border to check on known nests and ring and tag any nestlings that were found. The use of an Eskom cherry-picker truck to access vulture nests was pioneered by the late James Wakelin from EKZNW who sadly died in a plane crash in Moçambique in 2008. The cherry-picker enables fieldworkers to be lifted up to nests to work on nestlings without having to use a climber that must scramble up the tree along vertical branches and thorny twigs to get to the nest. Sadly, we were not able to do any work at these sites in 2008 due to James’ passing.<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The effort however ended in a frustrating and perplexing process of visiting known nesting sites only to find that the trees have either collapsed, nests have started to disintegrate or were just no longer in use. Out of the 24 known nesting sites visited, we found only four active nests in the area, one of which contained a tiny chick that must have resulted from either a very late start to the breeding attempt or the first attempt having failed early in the breeding cycle. All of the 24 sites were active over the last 5 years and to find only four of these still active this year certainly was a worrying discovery. Although some of these nests may have become defunct due to old age, the death of the nesting trees or storm damage, it is highly unlikely that this could have accounted for all of them, especially when so many disused nests were still found intact.</span><br />
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<div align="justify"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The most likely factor that this decline in the breeding population of vultures in this area can be ascribed to is that a substantial number of adult breeding birds have been removed from the population by some or other means. Based on information obtained and incidents that have taken place over the last 3 years, it is very likely that most of the “missing” birds have been killed by feeding on poisoned carcasses placed in the veld for the explicit purpose of killing vultures. In 2007, 50+ vultures were killed during a mass-poisoning near the Mkhuze Game Reserve and earlier this year, another poisoning was reported from the area in which a substantial number of vultures were killed. </span><br />
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<div align="justify"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">It is believed that these birds were killed to obtain their heads and feet for use in the traditional medicine trade as many of the vulture carcasses were found with the heads removed. The head is the most popular part of vulture carcasses that is used in the trade. Various agro-chemicals are readily available in this area, among others from the large-scale cultivation of sugarcane and other crops. EKZNW estimates that, should the current trend of vulture poisoning continue, that even common species such as African White-backed Vultures would become extinct in KwaZulu-Natal within the next 15 years. The current rate of decline in the breeding population of the above area certainly seems to support this prediction.</span><br />
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<div align="justify"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">What can be done to address this? Trying to physically safeguard highly mobile birds like vultures from being poisoned is a near-impossible task. Not even the largest protected areas in Africa are large enough to achieve this and we know that vultures can cover several 100km² in a day in search of food of which a substantial part of its foraging range will fall outside of existing parks and reserves. It only requires one or two individuals within such an area with the intent to kill vultures to have a huge impact on the vulture population of an area. Poisoning is a highly effective, silent method which can be done randomly and anywhere and at its worst kill hundreds of birds at a time. Recent poisoning events in Tanzania where more than 300 birds in a single incident were killed once again confirm this.</span><br />
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</div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">This does not mean that we should give up on trying addressing the issue. A similar trend was noted in the 1960’s, 70’s and 80’s in South Africa which was fairly effectively countered by providing the public with important information in this regard to ensure that agricultural and other chemicals were better managed, controlled and used with due consideration of their potential impact on the environment. What is particularly relevant in this case is the fact that the use of poisoned vulture parts by people could potentially also lead to the death of the individuals concerned and this information should be made known to the potential clientele of dealers trading in vulture parts. The focus on the human-health issue is far more likely to have an effect in creating awareness of this threat in rural communities rather than trying to focus on the environmental impact. At the same time, it is essential that law enforcement with regard to the misuse of poisons is stepped up and that the penalties for people that are apprehended and found guilty of the misuse thereof, be appropriate to the potential impact of the crime on the environment and the community within which it took place.</span><br />
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<div align="justify"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Together with the loss of habitat, the threat of poisoning is currently by far the most serious that vulture populations in Africa face and it will take a continued and concerted effort by all parties concerned to effectively curb and address this.</span><br />
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<div align="justify"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Back to the pair with the small chick in northern Zululand…</span><br />
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<div align="justify"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">I am happy to say that the small chick was successfully raised to fledging age by the parents and has finally left the nest a few days ago. Let’s hope and trust that our efforts in conserving these birds will assist to ensure that it will one day be able to return to this area with its mate to build a nest and breed in a revived congregation of breeding pairs. This neigbourhood can and must be revived.</span><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-size: xx-small;">It will take a lot of hard work and concerted effort to ensure that this fledgling returns</span></strong><br />
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</div><div align="justify"> </div></div>Andre Bothahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02943491875397061249noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4329314609615100391.post-35124077935088614552009-11-27T09:23:00.000+02:002009-11-27T09:23:09.455+02:00Bearded Vultures in the Eastern Cape high demand for all the wrong reasonsThe Bearded Vulture Gypaetus Barbatus is without doubt one of the flagship-species of the Maloti-Drakensberg mountain range in South Africa and Lesotho and is currently listed as ‘Endangered’ in the Red Data Book of Birds of South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland. It is therefore no surprise that this species is the focus of one of the primary initiatives of the Birds of Prey Working Group of the Endangered Wildlife Trust and its partners in the form of the Bearded Vulture Task Force. The Task Force was established as a result of the Population Habitat Viability Analysis process that took place in April 2006 and has been working hard at addressing all the issues that affect the southern African population of this species.<br />
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Part of the activities of the Task Force is for all role-players to get together twice a year to coordinate and plan their work across the range of the species and participants from KwaZulu-Natal, Lesotho, the Free State and the Eastern Cape attend these meetings which are chaired by the species coordinator, Sonja Krüger. The latest was held in the small Eastern Cape Town of Matatiele and it was great to be able to set in place monitors in some of the areas where monitoring of sites were rather poorly covered among other issues covered during our deliberations.<br />
One of the people attending the discussions is a local community-based guide from this area of the Eastern Cape, Thulesile Nganga*, who has been working among the rural communities in this part of the Bearded Vulture’s range for several years and has gathered a lot of information on the use of local wildlife in the muthi trade of the area. We were rather surprised when he pulled a package from his back-pack which contained the head and a foot of a young Cape Vulture which he purchased from a local dealer!<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Thule with a Cape Vulture head and foot bought from a healer in town</span><br />
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Thule also provided us with valuable insights into the demand and uses of Bearded Vultures in particular among the isiXhosa-speaking communities in this part of the Eastern Cape. Although some of the aspects mentioned hereafter need further investigation, it is quite frightening to think of the impact that these use have on the Bearded Vulture in addition to the other factors that contribute to the current conservation status of this species.<br />
At this stage there are 6-7 traditional healers practicing their trade in this area and each of them use at least one vulture in a year. Bearded Vultures are by far the most sought-after species of vulture to be used in these parts and their relative rarity probably contributes to the greater demand and higher status. Traditional healers prefer that birds are captured alive as the head needs to be removed while it is still living so that “the brain does not flow down into the spinal chord” and the muthi loses its potency. Birds are often shot out of the air with a bow and arrow and the grounded bird is then killed. This contradicts the use of poison which is wide-spread elsewhere in South Africa and the rest of the continent. The use of poison is however a far easier, less time-consuming and cheaper way of getting hold of birds and could over time replace this belief and practice in the area.<br />
The range of uses of vulture parts in this area is also considerably wider compared to our current knowledge of practices elsewhere. Although vultures are also used for clairvoyant purposes here, and betting on soccer and horse-races, were specifically mentioned, the following information was also obtained:<br />
• Vulture bones are used during circumcision ceremonies. Due to the secretive nature of these rituals, the exact purpose and beliefs in this regard are poorly understood<br />
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• Vulture feathers are popular items of decoration with young boys<br />
• The bill is used to protect young herd boys in the mountains<br />
• Talons are burnt and used in a mixture of herbs to treat fever in children<br />
• There is a higher demand for vulture parts during certain cultural events<br />
Information about area-specific beliefs and uses of vulture parts are vitally important in assessing the scope and extent of the threat that this poses for an endangered species such as the Bearded Vulture. The recent establishment of a Zululand Raptor Working Group in partnership with the Wildlands Conservation Trust will in time also be of similar value to acquire more substantive information on vulture uses from this area. It is currently known that vulture populations in Zululand are under severe pressure from harvesting of birds for use in traditional medicine and information acquired through the community based fieldworkers will assist in expanding our knowledge and play an important role in determining our future strategies to address this threat.<br />
*Name has been changed to protect the informant’s identityAndre Bothahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02943491875397061249noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4329314609615100391.post-31204509740160860962009-11-15T17:01:00.000+02:002009-11-15T17:01:31.145+02:00Birding and other Adventures on our South American trip - October/November 2009<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><strong>24th of October 2009</strong></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">After both of us had to get up at 03:00am to finish some last-minute work, Thea and I finally set off on our long-awaited 2½-week trip to South America. We were collected at home by a shuttle company representative and driven to the airport, not a bad option to consider if the cost of parking at OR Thambo International Airport is considered!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Check-in was a drawn-out and at times frustrating affair with long waits in queues until we could finally settle down for a quick breakfast before having to board. What we didn’t realize, was that this frustration with the check-in would be even greater later. Thea also quickly bought herself a new book for the trip and we then boarded our flight which took off not long after the scheduled time.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">A 10½ hour flight in a confined space is not one of my favourite experiences, but it was OK because we were allocated seats next to each other and didn’t have any unwanted immediate neighbours. Both of us were really fatigued after almost a month of relentless working to try and reduce as much of a back-log as possible once we got back home and tried to get at least some sleep on the crossing of the Atlantic. However, I was as usual just about unable to get any sleep during the flight and I really envy people that are able to fall asleep under such conditions at the drop of a hat. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Fortunately, the weather during the entire flight was great and turbulence minimal and we finally touched down 15 minutes ahead of the scheduled 17:00pm local time at Guarulhos Airport in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Customs also seemed like a walk in the park and we were then directed to the baggage carousel where we waited over 45 minutes for all the bags, etc. to be off-loaded. Of course, our bags just never showed!</span><br />
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<div align="justify"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Realising that there was a problem I had a walk and a look around and managed to spot both our bags on a trolley parked on the apron through a window behind the carousel. There was a door right next to it and, realizing that our bags were clearly not going to be off-loaded, I jumped over the carousel, opened the door and shouted to the guy in attendance that he still had our bags. Language is clearly an issue and his English was properly better than my non-existent Portuguese, but not by much. It was evident that this avenue of communication was not going to help and I turned around and started looking for assistance from one of the counters further back from the baggage area. A young man that was substantially more fluent in English finally managed to make radio contact with the guy outside by our bags and prevented him from driving off. He was joined by another, considerably more serious looking fellow that asked if he could see my passport. This I handed over and he promptly turned on his heels and walked off with it! Now, being torn between the safety of our bags and getting my passport back, I didn’t quite know what to do. The bags won when I saw the gentleman walking into an office an getting behind a desk-top computer, at least I would be able to pinpoint him later, or so I thought.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">The young guy finally managed to convince the baggage handler to send through our two bags and it was a huge relief to take ownership of these again. Turning around however, we were confronted by three serious-looking fellows with gold badges clasped to their belts, telling me that they were federal police and that I had contravened airport regulations by jumping over the carousel and opening the door to the apron. This was quite a serious offence and could be punishable by being extradited back to South Africa. After about 5 minutes of explaining and further intervention by our Good Samaritan airport official, my passport was returned and we were allowed to go. Not a great start to our South American travels.</span><br />
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</div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">When we finally arrived in our room at the Ibis Gaurulhos Hotel not too far from the airport about an hour later, it became obvious why the baggage handlers didn’t plan to off-load our bags. The check-in genius at ORTIA had seen our rather extensive e-tickets and decided to book our luggage into transit all the way to Cusco in Peru where we were only scheduled to arrive 24 hours later! It clearly didn’t matter to her to ask if this was in order or whether we had any arrangements for the lay-over in Brasil. To put it very mildly and, considering that I nearly had a first-hand experience with the South American prison system, I was less than impressed!</span><br />
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<div align="justify"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">The Ibis Hotel is in a very built-up area and we decided to relax in the lounge of the hotel for the rest of the evening, having a few beers and watching the people go by. As with my previous visit, it was very obvious that Brazil is a place with lots of very good looking people, especially the ladies who, when younger than 40 almost all looked as if they could be working in the fashion industry! We finally went to bed at 20:30pm local time, considering that it was already well past midnight at home and that we had a 21-hour day behind us, sleep came rather easily.</span><br />
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<div align="justify"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><strong>25th of October 2009</strong></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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<div align="justify"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Needless to say, our bodies and minds were still attuned to South African time and daylight-hours and we were both wide awake by 02:00am! I decided to check out internet access and was happy to learn that I could still access e-mail via the hotel’s WLAN. Sadly, the internet connection was more problematic and I couldn’t access any of the usual sites or start blogging. We also received some SMS’s and a phone call from my mother which was quickly terminated when she realized that she would have to carry some of the cost!</span><br />
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<div align="justify"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">We were ready and waiting in the lobby of the hotel just after 06:00am and the transit-bus finally collected and delivered us at the airport for our next flight to Lima, Peru. Once again, it was a bit of a tight affair with us having to be helped through due to the long queues waiting for other flights and we made it to our boarding gate with about 5 minutes to spare. I am amazed that, certain airport staff working at check-in counters, etc. are unable to speak any other language than Portoguese, especially considering the fact that it is an international airport! However, most of them are very helpful and friendly, certainly a far cry from the often more surly treatment one gets in South Africa, in particular with certain national carriers! Also of interest was the extent of security checks which sound very similar to that of the US and we even had to take our shoes off before walking through the security gates. With my usual short straw in hand, I was asked to do so 3 times until they realized my 2 copper armbands are what is tripping the alarm! Well, got through and we’re on our way… only two more airports today.</span><br />
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<div align="justify"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">One aspect of the trip that has been slow to get going is the birding. Considering the amount of time available and our locations in the initial stages, I suppose it’s not surprising. However, the first sighting of a bird that I had was in the plane shortly after touch-down in Sao Paulo when a flock of five ibis-like birds flew low over the grassveld surrounding the tarmacs. Subsequently, I have been able to confidently add <strong>Rock Pigeon</strong>, <strong>Black Vulture</strong> and <strong>Rufous Hornero</strong> to the list. Three species that need to be confirmed are a common Thrush of which I also saw plenty on my previous trip to the continent, a Caracara-species, some Swifts and Lapwings that very much resembled our Blacksmiths. No problem in predicting that the birdlist stands to improve substantially in the next few weeks!</span><br />
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<div align="justify"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">I am happy to say that we finally arrived in Cuzco after nearly missing the connecting flight from Lima. However, friendly ground staff at the airport were very helpful and we got to our seats with a few minutes to spare. Passage through the security gates at Lima was once again a bit of a gauntlet and I ended up stripped of everything remotely metallic, except for the lead in my pencil, before being let through! Our transfer from the airport arrived promptly and we were taken to our hotel, the Inka Andes while being informed of some of the sights and sounds. Arriving at the hotel, we were checked in and treated to a drink of tea extracted from Coca-leaves, the same stuff that cocaine is produced from and also from which an extract to make Coca-Cola is derived. The taste is quite good, once you get the knack of sipping through the leaves.</span><br />
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<div align="justify"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Cuzco is an amazing place which is difficult to describe in a few words. It feels as if the place is steeped in history and the many churches, monuments, etc. attests to this area’s past . Walking the cobble-stone streets and looking at the buildings, it is certainly worlds removed from what we are familiar with in South Africa, but in a good way. The place has a sense of character which few towns in South Africa can ever aspire to and the local people are very friendly. Most of them rely on the tourism sector for an income and sell wares at their stalls or act as tour guides. It was a very enjoyable afternoon spent walking the streets and browsing the stalls for a variety of stuff.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/Sv_CB0gWJJI/AAAAAAAAAIk/tsF_WtG3u_0/s1600-h/Main+Square_Cuzco,+Peru_25.10.09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" sr="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/Sv_CB0gWJJI/AAAAAAAAAIk/tsF_WtG3u_0/s320/Main+Square_Cuzco,+Peru_25.10.09.jpg" /></a><br />
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<div align="justify"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">At 18:30pm we met with our guide, Miguel, for a briefing about the Manu Adventure Tour which will start at 04:30am tomorrow morning and will last for the next 5 days to hopefully boost our bird-list considerably. We both are feeling the effects of long flights and the altitude by now and it will be good to get to some lower altitudes to get rid of the headaches, shortness of breath, etc. Cuzco after all lies at an altitude of 3400m above sea-level, higher than the highest point in southern Africa.</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">After very little sleep due to the fact that we were still not fully adjusted to the time difference, we woke up very early and started preparing for our 5-day trip into the Manu National Park which forms part of the Amazon catchment and promised to deliver some good quality birding, the main purpose of coming here in the first place. We were collected at our hotel by our guide, Miguel and his support team at 04:30am and we drove to the first site that he wanted to visit to show us the local birds.</span><br />
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<div align="justify"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">We arrived at Lagos Guadalcalpa about an hour after our departure and just as it became light ebough to see. Our first bird for the trip was an <strong>Andean Gull</strong> that flew over the water and called as it went past us. This was quickly followed by several new species as we walked along the edge of the lake. We later veered into some dry brush away from the lake where we were able to notch up several more species, including the rare and endemic <strong>Yellow-billed Tit-tyrant</strong> as well as the <strong>Giant Hummingbird</strong>, a spectacular species and Thea’s first ever sighting of a member of this family. This was quickly followed by sightings of other members of this family such as the <strong>Black-tailed Trainbearer</strong> and the endemic <strong>Bearded Mountaineer</strong>. We also had the opportunity to visit the remains of a very old settlement called Kaňaracay which was apparently established even before the Inca kingdom came about. Walking down the road from there, we had an excellent sighting of the <strong>Bearded Solitaire</strong>, another member of the large Hummingbird-family and an endemic to the area. Not a bad way to start off the first bit of decent birding we were able to do on the trip.</span><br />
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<div align="justify"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">From there we proceeded towards our first over-night stop on the tour, San Pedro Lodge in the Manu National Park. The route traversed some very diverse and beautiful country and at times literally took our breaths away. We left the main road and started climbing up one of the many deep kloofs along a pass that took us from an altitude of about 3300m to the highest point at 4800m in a matter of about 2 hours. The sheer drops and never-ending winding road passed several small settlements along the way and it was amazing to see how intensively some areas are cultivated against almost impossibly steep slopes. The old joke about breeding animals with one set of legs shorter on one side to enable them to better cope with steep slopes would certainly apply here. Crops varied from corn (mealies), wheat, barley, potatoes and onions and each piece of land seems to be lovingly tended and a system of rotational planting also seems to be in evidence.</span><br />
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<div align="justify"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Of course, birding certainly played a significant part in our activities and me managed to add several more species to our list. <strong>Andean Flicker</strong>, <strong>Mountain Caracara</strong> and another endemic hummingbird, the <strong>Golden-tailed Saltator</strong> added to our growing list of species. Both of us felt the effect of the increasing altitude, but any discomfort was quickly blown away by our arrival at a high-altitude lake that have a few minutes before experienced a hail-storm which left most of the country-side covered in a white blanket of ice which we initially mistook for snow. Disembarking to have a look at some of the birds on the lake, the substantial drop in temperature was evident and we quickly grabbed for a jacket to keep warm. Species encountered here included <strong>Andean Goose</strong>, <strong>Andean Lapwing</strong>, <strong>Crested Duck</strong>, <strong>Puna Ibis</strong> and <strong>Silvery Grebe</strong>. This is really an amazing area with some very special birds and apparently not a site visited by many birders and definitely not the standard run-of-the-mill tourist.</span><br />
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<div align="justify"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Our travels continued from here and we almost immediately started to drop down towards the Manu National Park, but this was still many kilometres over bad roads and several hours away. Once we started the descent, we entered a much drier area which obviously received a lot less rainfall than where we came from and the next 2-3 hours were rather dusty and bumpy until we reached the last big town before getting to the entrance to Manu National Park. Two incidents along this section that stand out in my memory, is the wedding that we drove past taking place mid-afternoon on a Monday where a large group of folk dressed in traditional garb were having a great party, singing and dancing like there was no tomorrow. Imagine that happening on a Monday afternoon in South Africa?! </span><br />
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<div align="justify"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">The other was of the large truck that caught us from behind, almost shoved us aside and passed us in a cloud of dust to hurtle along the pass at a frightening speed. How it managed to get down from the pass in one piece can only be ascribed to luck and mercy. Sadly we came to know these trucks much better in the coming days as they are a major factor on the narrow, winding tracks and are apparently also the major agents for the exporting of illegally harvested hardwood as well as a certain grade of coca-leaves which drug-dealers are keen to get their hands on, the trade of which is of course illegal. A birding highlight along this stretch was the sighting of <strong>Torrent Duck</strong> on at least two occasions in the riverbed along which we drove at some stage. This was a species that I wished to see ever since watching Attenborough’s “Life of Birds” for the first time more than 10 years ago as these birds are very adept at making a living gleaning their food from underneath boulders and fast-flowing rivers in the area.</span><br />
</div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">We finally reached the entrance to the Manu National Park quite late in the afternoon, but not before undergoing a change of drivers which we were later to learn was because of the fact that the driver that was actually supposed to be accompanying us on the trip had a major hang-over after celebrating his birthday the day before and was incapable of driving us! This forced the manager of the fleet to initially drive us himself until he encountered one of the drivers returning with a group of clients to Cuzco and summarily ordered a change of staff, resulting in the new driver taking over while the boss returned to Cuzco with his clients. Having become used to our first driver, who was very good and considered our needs as a priority, it was a bit of an effort to get used to the new driver who seemed more intent on getting us to the Lodge rather than to make a scenic drive out of it. Fortunately, Miguel realized this and started to very carefully manage the speed and approach of the new fellow with great gusto.</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">The habitat changes dramatically once you approach Manu National Park and, from a very arid and dusty environment, it changes rather rapidly to lush, tall montane forest, generally referred to as “cloud-forest”. This is certainly an apt name for the area as we experienced almost constant overcast conditions with the mist often blocking the view substantially during our drive. We managed to make a few stops to bird before it got really dark and this was the occasion where I made my first acquaintance with the family of Tanagers, a large group of birds of which most members are very vividly coloured and will take your breath away when you see them. The first Tanager to cross our paths in this area was the aptly-named <strong>Scarlet-bellied Montane Tanager</strong>, a magnificent bird with a bright vermillion breast and belly. Other species encountered on this rather short afternoon were <strong>Azara’s Spinetail</strong>, <strong>Chestnut-bellied Mountain Tanager</strong> and our first encounter with the <strong>Great Thrush</strong>.</span><br />
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<div align="justify"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">When the light became so bad that we couldn’t see the birds at all anymore, our driver was instructed to get us to camp as soon as was reasonable. We finally arrived there just before 20:00pm, tired but satisfied to have arrived after a long day on the road, Needless to say, the last leg was punctuated by meeting with several large trucks approaching from the front and our vehicle being forced to make way, sometimes having to reverse several hundred metres in the process.</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Another night of little sleep finally dawned into a new day on which we were scheduled to go and look for and observe the lekking behaviour of the <strong>Cock-of-the Rock</strong> , Peru’s national bird. We met with Miguel at 04:45 and walked from the San Pedro Lodge to the area where vehicles are parked to find that the driver was struggling the get our vehicle started. It finally did get going with a huff and a push, but set off around a corner and Manual suggested that we walk to a site where the birds should be displaying. We reached the area in question to find that it has been fenced off from the road and access was only possible through a padlocked door to which Miguel didn’t have the key. He asked us to stay at the site and set off to go and find a key. I must admit that it was rather frustrating to hear the birds displaying and calling on the other side of the fence and not being able to get there to photograph them. We even managed to get a few glimpses of the birds through a hole in the fence, but these were only fleeting views.</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Fortunately, Miguel returned with the vehicle and driver and he suggested we go to an alternative site to see if we could get views of the birds there. We were driven a few kilometres up the road to another site that was fenced off from the road, but whose padlock refused to budge due to rust. Miguel promptly assisted us in getting around this obstacle by breaking away some of the very rotten wall and allowing us to climb through. Once inside, we were almost immediately entertained by the sight of over twenty male Cock-of-the-Rock spread out in a small area on perches as they were displaying and calling trying to outdo one another in the hope of attracting the attention of females that may be interested. The males are probably one of the most spectacular, yet odd, birds that I have ever seen. Apart from the white eyes, vivid scarlet head, chest and shoulders, black belly and tail, they also have 4 pairs of grey-white feathers on the back. By far the weirdest feature is the feathers on the forehead that form a bulbous protruberance that at the bottom extends to the tip of the bill, often making it seem as if the bird has no bill at all. These feathers are fluffed out and the birds jump, bow and flap their wings while calling in there attempts to catch the attention of the females of which we were lucky enough to see two during our visit to the site. The females then decide on which male she will mate with depending on which display she likes best. What the criteria are, I am not sure and, looking at their dull appearance in comparison to that of the males, one wonders what all the fuss is about. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><br />
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<div align="justify"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">While all this was going on, I was frantically trying to photograph some of the displaying birds. I must admit that I am not a great exponent of flash photography at this stage and found it quite frustrating to work in the poor light conditions with limited experience of using the equipment that I have under such conditions. It also didn’t help that there were often unwanted branches, leaves and other obstacles in the way of the constantly moving birds that one wanted to shoot. Fortunately, Miguel was kind enough to borrow me his tripod as this provided a great deal of stability during shooting and the few photographs that were usable in the end can largely be ascribed to this. I have undertaken to seriously study the art of flash photography after this! However, none of this could detract from the 90-minute long spectacle in front of us and it was indeed a privilege to be able to personally observe a phenomenon that isn’t at all common in southern African birds. We left the viewing platform very satisfied after enjoying excellent views of this spectacular species.</span><br />
</div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">We decided to walk back to the Lodge and to continue our birding along the way. Our first species was sitting not 10metres from us about 200m down the road, but none of us saw it until we had walked right past. It was a spectacular <strong>Blue-crowned Motmot</strong>, about twice the size of our local Rollers and more colourful with its iridescent plumage and long tail. It was however very obliging and returned to its original perch for a photograph before heading off into the forest. For the next two and a half hours we slowly made our way back to camp and were treated to a spectacle of Amazonian Cloud Forest birds. This included a range of <strong>Tanagers</strong> and this family of birds easily cemented itself as an all-time favourite with us in the days to come. The names of the different species do not even come close to do justice to the dazzling array and combinations of colours on the various species that we were lucky to see. This ranged from the very common <strong>Silver-billed-</strong> to the really breath-taking <strong>Paradise-, Grass-green-, Masked-, Blue-grey-, Bay-head-</strong> and <strong>Saffron-crowned Tanagers</strong>. In addition to the Tanagers, there were also a range of other species too many to mention, but it is worth mentioning that we had our first sighting of a large raptor for the trip in the form of an adult <strong>Solitary Eagle</strong> as well.</span><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Andean Cock-of-the-Rock <em>Rupicola peruvianus, the national bird of Peru</em></span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">We also met with a small family of local people waiting for a lift along the side of the road where Thea was very impressed to find that she was at least a head taller than any of the ladies in the group! This stop also included our first sighting of a local monkey species in the form of Brown Capuchin. Most notable however, was the appearance of our driver, Walter walking down the road sans our vehicle. It turns out that the vehicle skid down an embankment when he tried to make way for one of the timber trucks and that it was well and truly stuck. He continued to camp to try and arrange for assistance to get the vehicle out of its rather precarious position hanging half-way down an embankment. We eventually arrived arrived back at camp with a substantially boosted bird list and a new-found fascination with the biodiversity of the Cloud Forest. It was also not surprising when a typical tropical downpour occurred shortly after our return to camp. This actually turned out to be more than just a passing shower or two and the inclement weather stayed with us until well into the next morning.</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Despite the continuing drizzle and rain, Miguel recommended that we still go out and try to get some birding in. This turned out to be a good decision as we were able to add <strong>Amazonian Umbrellabird</strong>, <strong>Roadside Hawk</strong> and <strong>Blueish-fronted Jacamar</strong> to our list. We bravely decided to walk the last few kms back to camp and, as could have been predicted, the rain closed in and the light went making birding virtually impossible. It wasa group of three wet and bedraggled birders that finally arrived back at camp just before 18:00. When we got back to camp, we found that a group from Eastern Europe had also checked in and were staying there for 2 nights. The rest of the evening we spent down-loading images and chatting to Miguel about the plans for the next day.</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">After my first night of really decent sleep, we awoke a 04:15am and started packing to depart for Erika Lodge deeper in the Park. Bad news was that it was still raining and our first 2-3 hours on the road was quite a wet affair, especially when we jumped out of the vehicle to look at birds. Despite the inclement weather, we still notched an sizeable list of new species including birds such as <strong>Plumbeous Kite</strong>, <strong>Blue-headed Parrot</strong>, <strong>Long-tailed Tyrant</strong>, <strong>Speckled Chachalaca</strong>, <strong>Spix’s Guan</strong> and <strong>Smooth-billed Ani</strong>. The habitat changed considerably from tall montane forest to more open forest-areas interspersed with open areas covered with grass where a whole different range of bird species were recorded. </span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">At about 09:00, we arrived at a farming settlement that was also developing a lodge and where, according to Miguel, a range of good species could be found. We decided to have breakfast here and were finally rewarded for our patience when the clouds lifted and the rain disappeared. With that, the birds started to appear and we could add several more species to our list including <strong>Pale-legged Hornero</strong>, <strong>Blue-backed Grassquit</strong>, <strong>Magpie Tanager</strong>, <strong>Green-and-Gold Tanager</strong> and <strong>Squirrel Cuckoo</strong>. Miguel also became very excited when I pointed out two large parrots flying and calling overhead. These turned out to be a pair of <strong>Military Macaws</strong> which is not a very common species in this particular area. After a short walk through a forest patch that didn’t produce too much in the way of birds, but almost saw me fall through a rather rotten wooden footbridge (a great way to encourage anyone to try and lose some weight), we continued our journey to Erika Lodge.</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Our journey continued and we finally reached the next town and the main centre of human settlement in the area, also called the gateway to Manu National Park, Pillcopata. Here there are several shops, a service station and other utilities and a large bridge crosses the impressive Rio Piňini towards our final destination. We managed to stock up on cold drinks, water and even found some Peruvian red wine which we planned to enjoy over dinner the next two nights. The shopkeeper was very friendly and the purchases very reasonably priced and she also allowed us to take a picture of her and the business. Thea and I wandered down the track through town while Miguel and his team purchased some fuel for the boat that was to transport us to Erika Lodge later that day.</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Once all the necessary supplies were obtained, we continued towards the last stop before we would board a boat to the Lodge, a small town called Atalaya, which is situated approximately 450 a.s.l. The road here follows the river until it joins another before it heads over a substantial ridge before descending to the banks of the Rio Alto Madre dos Dios and the docking area for our boat. The vegetation here is incredibly lush and decidedly tropical with forest extending as far as the eye can see in all directions. We were amazed by the range and spectacular beauty of some of the flowering plants as well the large numbers of epiphytes growing in the trees. As always, birds were eagerly sought and we were rewarded with sightings of a number of new additions to our list, including <strong>Greater Yellow-headed Vulture</strong> which we found perched with wings outstretched trying to dry its feathers after all the rain and which remained in one spot long enough for a decent photograph. Other great sightings included two species of Trogon within an hour of each other, namely <strong>Blue-crested-</strong> and <strong>Black-tailed Trogon</strong>, <strong>Crested Oropendola</strong>, <strong>Chestnut-fronted Swift</strong> and <strong>Fine-barred Piculet</strong>.</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SwARrGmInfI/AAAAAAAAAJc/g5IuZI1h9NE/s1600-h/Rio+Alto+Madre+del+Dios_Manu+National+Park,+peru-28.10.09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" sr="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SwARrGmInfI/AAAAAAAAAJc/g5IuZI1h9NE/s320/Rio+Alto+Madre+del+Dios_Manu+National+Park,+peru-28.10.09.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">View of the Rio Alto Madre dos Dios above the town of Atalaya</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Our arrival at Atalaya coincided with the return of the rain and we hastily packed the boat after paying an entry fee into the Park as well as a boat tax, there seems to be no escaping having to pay taxes even here in the back of beyond! The Rio Alto Alto Madre dos Dios is a fairly wide, but very fast-flowing tributary of the Manu River which forms a tiny part of the massive Amazon basin. I used to think that the eastern parts of the Zambezi river was fairly fast-flowing, but this river makes it seem fairly sedentary by comparison and the boatsman had to know his stuff to ensure that he transported us safely to our destination a few kilometres downstream. Along the way, we also managed to record a few more bird species, this time largely associated with the river, namely <strong>Fasciated-</strong> and <strong>Capped Heron</strong>, <strong>Neotropical Cormorant</strong>, <strong>Snowy-</strong> and <strong>Great Egret</strong> and <strong>White-winged Swallows</strong> which swept low over the fast-flowing water. Upon our arrival at the Lodge, we had to wade through fairly thick mud as the river had risen and subsided in the previous 24 hours and the going was quite sticky until we reached firmer ground.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Greater Yellow-headed Vulture <em>Cathartes melambrotos</em></span><br />
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<div align="justify"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Erika Lodge as basic, but well-equipped with very friendly staff and we were shown to our room by the manager of the Lodge, whom everyone refers to as Doctor. After settling in, we decided to make ourselves comfortable in the garden and to see what birds could be recorded here. The last daylight hour didn’t produce too much and it was great to have a shower to wash away the sweat and stickiness that the long journey produced. Dinner was great, but the Peruvian wine that we bought for Thea proved to be less of a hit with us Safricans who are generally used to a drier variety of the stuff. I could only manage a sip or two before graciously returning it to the bottle!</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">We once again rose early as we were instructed to be at the docking area at about 04:45am if we wanted to get to the Parrot Lick in time to see the spectacle of large numbers of parrots feeding on the clay substrate. This is done to supplement their diet and, in some cases, to neautralize some of the potentially harmful substances in the food that they eat. Getting to the docking area, we were surprised to find no one there. When I went to enquire at the guides quarters, it turns out that everyone had a bit of a jol the night before and over-slept! Miguel joined us rather sheepishly with the excuse that his alarm didn’t go off. The delay wasn’t too serious though and we managed to get going pretty quickly, once again heading a short distance downstream to the riverbanks where the parrots congregate. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Sizeable flocks of birds were already heading towards the lick and were calling loudly as they did so. We were however only able to get to within about 250m of the area where they were feeding and had to observe them doing so through a telescope. This is due to the fact that the river has changed its flow during the last wet season and now only allowed an approach at such a long distance. I must admit that I was slightly under-awed by the spectacle, having seen footage and photographs of similar sites elsewhere in the Amazon. However, we were still able to record no less than 7 species of parrot at the lick, the highlight of which was a fly-past of a single, massively large <strong>Blue-and-Yellow Macaw</strong> that passed right over our heads. Seeing this free-flying bird in its natural environment made me wonder how we as humans can even think about keeping them in captivity in our homes, mostly as single, very expensive display pieces when they are so clearly more happy in their natural home. Most of the parrots are also very sociable birds and the keeping of single birds, if any, is actually quite a tragedy. Our stay at the parrot lick site was also rewarded with our first sighting a wader, namely <strong>Spotted Sandpiper</strong> and we also had a fleeting glimpse of a <strong>Curve-billed Scythe-bill</strong>. The return trip to the Lodge also produced the first Kingfisher of the trip in the form of <strong>Amazon Kingfisher</strong>, a species that resembles our Giant Kingfisher, but which is smaller in size.</span><br />
</div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">After breakfast, Miguel suggested that we depart for a nearby Lodge which had an excellent garden where an array of hummingbirds could be recorded. This we did and what an experience this turned out to be! No less than 4 species of hummingbirds were recorded and I decided to take up the challenge of trying to photograph them. This is certainly no easy thing as these diminutive little birds are serious candidates for a daily dose of Ritalin because they never sit still or hang around to feed on the same flower for more than a few seconds! The next hour was thus spent trying to catch just a few half-decent images of these pretty little devils for posterity. Fortunately, this did seem to pay some dividends as I now do have some images that are worth looking at. </span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">On our return to Erika Lodge, we went for a walk through the forest downstream towards the area where canopy tours are offered. This walk didn’t really offer a huge number of new birds, but a highlight that will forever be etched in my mind is the sighting of two adult <strong>King Vultures</strong> in flight, continuously circling over our heads for the next 45 minutes. This bird is one that, in my current area of work, I have come to be quite interested in, especially after the contacts made through the International Vulture Awareness Day in September. The picture of the bird depicted on the IVAD09 website speaks for itself and when the opportunity arose to get to an area where this bird is found, I was really hoping to be able to see it. Other species seen on the walk, included <strong>Black-fronted Nunbird</strong>, <strong>Swallow-tailed Wood-nymph</strong> and <strong>Yellow-tufted Woodpecker</strong>.</span><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Male Rufous-crested Coquette <em>Rophornis delattrei</em></span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">The sun finally came out in full force at about 11:30am and we immediately realized that we were in the tropics as the heat and humidity increased considerably in the next few hours. We decided to take it easy for the first time since leaving home and spent the next few hours lazing about and photographing the vast array of butterflies that frequents the Lodge gardens. The sheer number and brilliance of these insects were astounding and once again reflected the great diversity of just about anything here! According to Miguel, Manu National Park boasts a list of over 3000 species and new species are apparently discovered on a regular basis. It was certainly an interesting challenge as they, similar to the hummingbirds, also don’t sit still for a moment and often just simply refuse to open their wings to show off their breath-taking colours. Another thing to keep in mind was the fact that an array of little wasps also frequented the area and were not averse to having a go at using their stings on you. Thea and I both still bear the scars to prove this!</span><br />
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<div align="justify"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">While lazing the early afternoon away, I noticed two helicopters intermittently flying along the opposite side of the river, transporting large pieces of equipment and dropping them of about 2-3kms away from the opposite riverbank. Upon enquiring, I learnt the worrying news that the Peruvian government recently prospected for and found a substantial oil deposit in the area and have decided to start drilling in this unspoilt area. There is little doubt that this development will have a substantial impact on the environment, existing livelihoods and communities in the area and the community of Atalaya is currently protesting this development vehemently. Considering that Manu is registered as a World Biosphere Reserve more needs to be done and there’s little doubt that, if they do not receive substantive outside backing, this will go ahead regardless.</span><br />
</div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Miguel suggested that we head off to Michu Wasi oxbow-lake after tea and arranged for a boat to take us to the other side of the river to start our walk. It was still very hot and we were sweating profusely during the intial stages of the walk. This was however easily forgotten with our first views of the Archeopterix of living birds, the <strong>Hoatzin</strong>, when a small group of these very vocal creatures were flushed and noisily flapped through the rather dense vegetation. One of them was obliging enough to pose for a few photographs which made the celebration of our first sighting of this species even more special.</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Our initial excitement about this sighting soon seemed rather superfluous, especially once we reached the oxbow-lake and could see in excess of 25 of these birds perched at various spots along the lakeshore. The area turned out to be quite a significant breeding site for this species and we counted not less than 9 nests and two birds mating. One of the nests contained a very small chick and two eggs which we were able to see when the incubating briefly left the nest for a wing-stretch. It was quite amazing that this species could so quickly become a bit of a trash-bird, but the excitement of seeing this species will certainly not disappear quickly.</span><br />
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<div align="justify"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SwAURFq4_iI/AAAAAAAAAJ8/Wpeg91uaQqw/s1600-h/Hoatzin_Manu+National+Park,+Peru_29.10.09.1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" sr="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SwAURFq4_iI/AAAAAAAAAJ8/Wpeg91uaQqw/s320/Hoatzin_Manu+National+Park,+Peru_29.10.09.1.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Hoatzin <em>Opisthocomus hoayzin</em>, a modern-day Archeopteryx</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">According to Miguel, an old man decided to start looking after the area and managed to obtain community support to stop fishing and hunting around it. He erected perches and now charges people to visit the area, the proceeds of which goes to enable him to continue with his good work. Among some of the inventions that he came up with, is the building of two floats which people can use to lazily drift on the shallow lake to observe the wide range of species that occur there. Among those seen, it was also great to see <strong>American Purple Gallinule</strong> in it’s natural range and the lake had a number of these birds foraging in the vegetation fringing it. We were also able to add two more Kingfisher-species to our list, namely <strong>Green-</strong> and <strong>Ringed</strong>. Another feature of the lake is a sizeable mixed breeding colony of <strong>Crested Oropendula</strong> and <strong>Yellow-backed Casique</strong> in a large palm tree on the one bank. </span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">We stayed at the lake until just after dark and slowly made our way back to the river and waiting boat to take us back to camp. It was quite difficult walking without flashlights which Miguel suggested we don’t use due to the fact that there were some flying bugs frequenting the marshy area that are attracted to lights that could give one a nasty, burning bite that causes a lot of discomfort. Thea slipped at one of the makeshift wooden bridges in the dark, but fortunately was not hurt. That evening over dinner, one of our tracelling companions, who turns out to be one of the co-owners of Manu Adventures, approached me with a request to use some of the pictures I took on the trip on their marketing materials. I agreed to do so in exchange for one of their company shirts for both Thea and me and proceeded to process some of the many images I took on the day, before going to sleep.</span><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">The stunning beauty of Machu Wasi oxbow lake</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">We arranged to leave Erika Lodge for our return journey to Cuzco at just after 06:00am. The journey by boat up-stream too decidedly longer than traveling with the flow of the river and the spray at times was quite extensive. We did however reach the little town of Atalaya in good time and met up with our driver and vehicle to start the 10-hour drive back to civilization.</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">The route we followed was initially the very same we came by, but looked very different due to the clear and sunny conditions that now prevailed. The biggest challenge, as on the way down, was the vehicles approaching from the front on the very narrow roads, especially on the leg through the Cloud Forest where the sheer drop on the one side was dizzying to say the least. Evidence of the danger was provided by the wreck of one sedan parked on the side of the road that had the misfortune to collide with one of the timber-trucks that came hurtling down the pass. We had several close shaves and Thea in particular didn’t enjoy this part of the trip. Rising in altitude from 450m asl to 3560m in a matter of 3 hours didn’t help either and she was feeling decidedly woosy by the time we stopped at the entrance gate to Manu for lunch. A major compensation on this leg of the trip was our first and second sightings of a members of the Quetzal-family, namely <strong>Golden-headed Quetzal</strong> which also very obligingly posed for photographs on both occasions. It was really great to see these “Trogons on Steroids” in their natural environment.</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">After lunch, we proceeded to Cuzco through the very dusty and dry section of the route to Procartambo where we deviated from the route we took on Monday. What was quite worrying by now, was the need to regularly stop and fill the vehicle’s radiator with water and the throaty noises emenating from the gearbox every time the driver changed gears. I was getting really worried that we may not make it back to town before dark and the driver’s visible relief when we finally reached the tar road was obvious. If we thought that the end of the trip was just around the corner, we were seriously wrong as it took another 2 hours to finally reach the outskirts of Cuzco. We did however travel through very scenic country that included the Sacred Valley of the Inca and it was very impressive to see the terraces and other stryctures established by this culture in the area. The valley seems to be very protected from the strong winds that prevail in this area and is still intensively cultivated to this day. The small town of Pisa is located in the valley and the extensive crops around it makes an important contribution to food production for the country.</span><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Golden-headed Quetzal <em>Pharomachrus auriceps</em></span><br />
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</div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">We finally arrived in Cuzco at just after 17:00pm and said our good-byes to Miguel and the rest of the bunch that traveled back with us. It was a good thing that we only found out here that our driver’s nick-name was “Muerto” or “Death”, as I’m sure that it would have added a decidedly different atmosphere to the trip back. We were very relieved to finally put our bags down and try to get relatively clean after 5 days of travel. Sadly, our warm water system hadn’t yet fully kicked in and we had to be satisfied with cold showers.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;">Thus came to an end one of the best birding experiences I have ever had and one which can be highly recommended. Our guide, Miguel Garcia, is one of the best community based guides I have ever had the pleasure of working with and his eagerness to find all those special birds never waned throughout the trip. If you are interested in making use of Miguel in future, you can contact him at <a href="mailto:migama12@hotmail.com">migama12@hotmail.com</a> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;">Our journey from Cuzco continued the next morning, but more about that later...</span><br />
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</div><span style="font-size: x-small;"></span>Andre Bothahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02943491875397061249noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4329314609615100391.post-14660933196950245002009-10-18T05:25:00.000+02:002009-10-18T05:25:17.859+02:00Looking at Climate Change.....and experiencing some of it in Cape Town<div style="text-align: justify;">The first half of this week required a visit to Cape Town to attend a workshop on Climate Change hosted by the Climate Change Action Partnership (CAP), a partnership of 8 of the most prominent environmental NGO's in South Africa, including the Endangered Wildlife Trust. The workshop was held at the headquarters of the South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI) on the eastern slopes of Table Mountain in the grounds of the Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens. Unfortunately, the programme didn't really allow much time to walk and explore this very picturesque setting!<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/Stp7WgUlCsI/AAAAAAAAAIc/jT5PsiC5fss/s1600-h/SANBI+HQ_Kirstenbosch_Oct09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/Stp7WgUlCsI/AAAAAAAAAIc/jT5PsiC5fss/s320/SANBI+HQ_Kirstenbosch_Oct09.jpg" vr="true" /></a><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">If you have not been involved in any of the discussions on Climate Change before, it is quite a bewildering experience at first. Consistent with modern trends, this field of environmental study is wrought with what I call 'Acronymania" and the first few hours of presentations by learned colleagues were brim-full of a whole new range of acronyms which I've never heard of before. Examples of which are NCCCF, REDD, REDD+, SACCN, UNFCCC, PPRI, SANAS, NSSA, etc, etc. No wonder most people don't quite understand the very real impacts of global climate change and humanity's role in it! I think that one of the major challenges here is to clarify the message with regard to the causes, impact and changes brought about by this phenomenon for public consumption.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Fortunately, things improved during the first day when several projects focused on mitigating against climate change impacts across southern Africa provided feedback on the valuable work they were involved in. The most impressive presentation by far was by Ailsa Holloway from UCT who reviewed the major climatic events to affect the south-western Cape over the last 20 years and the extent and monetary losses suffered because of each. She made a very important point in saying that man needs to learn from the impacts of these events and adapt and plan the way we are doing things much better to reduce the risk of future losses and damage to infrastructure and even lives. The trend so far has been to replace and repair infrastructure as soon as possible after an event, but in exactly the same place it was before , just placing it in the path of the next flood, landslide, etc! Not great adaptive thinking and possibly also the recipe for even greater losses in future. This also means that people cannot just settle and build houses wherever they see fit. The regular flooding and washing away of housing establishments in up-market developments as well as informal housing in several areas of South Africa over the last few years also confirms the fact that people still do not realise the very real threats posed by the manner and rate of development and urbanisation that is currently prevalent in most large urban areas of the country.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Despite initial misgivings, it was certainly an informative workshop and there are quite a few options to include a climate change focus into the projects that I am involved in, especially with regard to migratory raptors and species frequenting habitats that are expected to be most adversely affected by this phenomenon.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">There certainly was enough weather packed into the three-day visit to back-up the fact that we are living in interesting times as far as climate is concerned. From the turbulent flight down to Cape Town, wind and rain on day 1, a beautiful sunny day on day 2, low mist on the West Coast and gale-force winds by the time I left on Wednesday evening, the Cape certainly put everything on display, No wonder the weather's the most spoken about topic in that part of the world!<br />
</div>Andre Bothahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02943491875397061249noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4329314609615100391.post-76461818871310694842009-10-12T14:32:00.004+02:002009-10-12T17:49:39.664+02:00Leave Vultures to use their own Heads!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">One of the outstanding characteristics of most Old World vultures is the fact that they possess extraordinary eyesight which, in species such as the Cape Vulture <em>Gyps coprotheres</em> pictured below, is believed to be at least ten times stronger than that of <em>Homo sapiens.</em> These birds rely on this extraordinary sensory ability to locate their food in the habitats where they occur. Apart from trying to locate a carcass themselves, vultures also look out for large predators on the ground and watch each other and other scavenging birds should anyone on the wing be lucky enough to find the food first.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Should a feeding opportunity be found and the first birds go down to feed, it is quite incredible to witness how vultures seem to converge from every direction in a matter of minutes to literally fill the sky above a carcass or feeding site. This is possible because vultures continually watch each other and can pick up concentrations of birds circling above a carcass from several kilometres away.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/StLCe7ksm8I/AAAAAAAAAIE/2E9xpHa_CfI/s1600-h/Cape+Vulture+Adult_Head.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img $r="true" border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/StLCe7ksm8I/AAAAAAAAAIE/2E9xpHa_CfI/s400/Cape+Vulture+Adult_Head.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-size: x-small;">Adult Cape Vulture showing yellow iris</span></strong><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Vulture eyesight is a quality that many cultures have come to admire and aspire to and this could have been one of the qualities that fascinated the ancient Egyptians to the extent that vultures were considered important enough to worship and honour as gods. However, it is also this same characteristic that, in modern times, is leading to an incredible negative impact on vultures in certain areas. Many cultures in Africa have developed the belief that vultures contain within them the gift of clairvoyancy or clear-sightedness, insight and the ability to predict certain future events. Many humans of course also aspire to obtain these qualities and believe that, by purchasing and consuming vulture body parts, in particular the heads of these birds, they will be able to acquire them.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">This has led to a significant impact on populations of vultures in certain parts of Africa due to the fact that this need has created an opportunity to generate income from the killing and harvesting of vultures for the sale of their body parts at "muthi"-markets by traditional healers. A study done by Myles Mander and Steve McKean in KwaZulu-Natal over several years indicate that, should the current rate of harvest continue, species such as White-headed Vulture <em>Aegypus occipitalis</em> and Lappet-faced Vulture <em>Aegyous tracheliotus</em> could disappear within the next 10 years while African White-backed <em>Vultures Gyps </em>africanus could go extinct in that province of South Africa in the next 15-25 years. According to the study, the current trade in vulture parts is estimated to exceed R1,2m and it is estimated that as many as 160 vultures are killed for the trade in eastern South Africa annually.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/StLx9YWhuNI/AAAAAAAAAIM/L97cgtBaK1k/s1600-h/African+White-backed+Vulture_Jwaneng,+Botswana_13.2.09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img $r="true" border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/StLx9YWhuNI/AAAAAAAAAIM/L97cgtBaK1k/s320/African+White-backed+Vulture_Jwaneng,+Botswana_13.2.09.jpg" /></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/StLyMSMZICI/AAAAAAAAAIU/SqS7MQiKsIE/s1600-h/Vulture+Heads+April+09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img $r="true" border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/StLyMSMZICI/AAAAAAAAAIU/SqS7MQiKsIE/s320/Vulture+Heads+April+09.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-size: x-small;">The picture at the top is that of a poisoned African White-backed Vulture found in Botswana while that at</span></strong><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-size: x-small;">the bottom is of a batch of vulture heads confiscated during a raid on a poachers camp in Tanzania.</span></strong><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">The most popular method of harvest used for vultures is undoubtedly the poisoning of carcasses or the placement of smaller poisoned baits in the veld which, if consumed, kill these birds quickly and can lead to the death of large numbers of birds in one attempt. A range of substances are used locally, but the most popular by far is aldicarb, known in the trade as Temmik or more generally referred to as "Two Step". The latter name refers to the fact that ingesting a small dose of it will kill any animal almost instantly or before it can take two steps. In South Africa, we have experienced poisoning incidents in the last few years where as many as 50 vultures have been killed in a single incident, but cases of over 200 birds being killed have also been recorded previously. Should such events occur at certain critical times of the year when breeding birds may have small chicks in the nest, the loss of a single bird from a breeding pair could be devastating and will inevitably lead to the failure of such a breeding attempt. Birds can also be acquired by setting traps or shooting them from the air with a shotgun, but this is far less common than the use of poison.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">EKZNW and the EWT-BoPWG about two years ago convened an action group to discuss options and plan concerted action to reduce the impact of this phenomenon on vulture populations in South Africa. One of the major concerns we have, is that people who use vulture parts could possibly suffer and even get killed due to secondary poisoning if that was the means used to acquire the bird in the first place. Some of the other actions agreed on by the Traditional Medicine Task Force were:<br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><ul><li><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Reducing the consumption and demand for vulture parts through an awareness campaign targeting consumers and other role-players in the trade<br />
</div></li>
<li><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Changing and creating policy to regulate the trade where necessary<br />
</div></li>
<li><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Improving policing and enforcement of relevant laws to regulate the trade<br />
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<li><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Improving the understanding of the vulture trade through monitoring and research, allowing more focused interventions<br />
</div></li>
</ul><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">In the last 12 months, however, information received from elsewhere in Africa seems to indicate that the use of vultures in traditional medicine is not only restricted to South Africa, but that harvesting also occurs in countries such as Botswana, Zambia and Tanzania. Tanzania in particular seems to have suffered pretty severely with evidence of more than 300 birds that have been killed in this year alone being received. Some of this evidence was recovered from poacher camps in the Serengeti and Selous where bags filled with vulture heads from a range of species have been confiscated by law enforcement officials. Although there is some speculation that these birds are harvested for the trade in South Africa, the extent of availability of vulture parts in markets in these countries seem to indicate that it is also used locally. The substance carbofuran seems to be the main poisoning agent used in East Africa and is widely available despite a recent ban on the sale thereof being imposed in Kenya.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Concern have also been expressed from elsewhere in Africa in this regard and in some areas people have also started targeting vultures as a source of protein and have started to use them as food. At least part of the huge decline in vulture populations in West Africa over the last 20 years is ascribed to this.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Because of these and other threats impacting on vulture populations on the continent, partners in the African Raptor Network are planning a pan-African Vulture Conservation Symposium in 2010 during which we plan to device a working strategy to address all threats facing vultures in Africa through concerted and coordinated action and working together to effectively address them. We are aiming to let people in Africa respect and understand the cultural and ecosystem benefits of conserving vultures and to support the principle that the birds should rather use their own heads rather than us!<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><strong><span style="font-size: x-small;">Reference:</span></strong><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">McKean, S. 2007. <em>Vultures and Traditional Medicine.</em> EWT-BoPWG Information Leaflet, Endengered Wildlife Trust</span><br />
</div>Andre Bothahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02943491875397061249noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4329314609615100391.post-90530606216909799542009-10-10T21:38:00.001+02:002009-10-12T17:56:34.069+02:00Southern Kalahari excursion - IVAD Partners, Fieldworkers and a few thousand pink birds in trouble<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">Thursday and Friday this week required me to travel to Kimberley to attend a meeting of the Northern Cape Raptor Conservation Forum. This forum was the brainchild of Mark Anderson and Abrie Maritz almost 17 years ago and aims to provide a forum to discuss and plan relevant raptor conservation issues in the Northern Cape with input from the full spectrum of organisations and individuals concerned, including important tole-players such as Northern Cape NatCon, SANParks, EWT-BoPWG fieldworkers and utility companies such as Eskom whose operations impact on raptors in the province. The forum gathers twice a year and I attempt to attend at least one of these meetings if possible as it also allows an opportunity to catch up with both of the senior field staff of the EWT-BoPWG, Abrie Maritz and Ronelle Visagie who work in the Kalahari and eastern Karoo respectively. The meeting was held at one of the De Beers properties, Dronfield Farm, situated just outside Kimberley in the southern Kalahari Sandveld and one of several sites where good numbers of African White-backed Vultures breed in good numbers in the Camelthorn-trees occuriing on the site.</span><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/StAunSFGREI/AAAAAAAAAHE/UNMQPQLcjio/s1600-h/Kalahari+sunset_Dronfield_8.10.09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="cssfloat: right; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img $r="true" border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/StAunSFGREI/AAAAAAAAAHE/UNMQPQLcjio/s400/Kalahari+sunset_Dronfield_8.10.09.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-size: x-small;">Sunset in the southern Kalahari, Dronfield Farm outside Kimberley</span></strong><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Ronelle came to collect me from the airport early on Thursday morning and I felt a lot better after a good breakfast, considering that only 2.5 hours of sleep was possible the night before when Thea and I attended a CATS show at Montecasino in support of BirdLife SA and only got home close to midnight! Fist stop was a meeting with Law Enforcement officials of NCape NC, but we managed to get any queries sorted in good time to the beenfit of all fieldworkers in the NCape. The rest of the day was spent waiting for vultures to oblige and be captured in the mass-capture facility kindly built by the Hawk Conservancy on Dronfield. When there was no action by about 3pm, I suggested to Ronelle that we go for a drive on the reserve. Needless to say, we found good numbers of birds at one of the waterholes on Dronfield, about 5kms from the capture site! We counted no less than <strong>54 African White-backed-, 7 Lappet-faced- </strong>and <strong>6 Cape Vultures</strong> at the site. No birds were kind enough to have themselves captured to be fitted with sarellite ptt's to follow their movements.<br />
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</div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/StDaVJDE3AI/AAAAAAAAAHs/oyTW4omqtsU/s1600-h/Vultures+at+Reservoir_Dronfield_8.10.09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img $r="true" border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/StDaVJDE3AI/AAAAAAAAAHs/oyTW4omqtsU/s400/Vultures+at+Reservoir_Dronfield_8.10.09.jpg" /></a><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-size: x-small;">Cape- and African White-backed Vultures at waterhole, Dronfield.</span></strong><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">That evening, we met up with some members of the Forum as well as staff and volunteers from The Hawk Conservancy in the UK who had travelled to Kimberley to participate in the annual ringing and tagging of vulture nestlings and who had also been sitting at the hide and monitoring activities at the mass-capture facility in the hope to catch some birds to with with satellite tracking devices to follow the movements of these birds as part of our studies of the movements of these birds, for the entire day!. At the time of writing this, the team, working with Mark Anderson and his team of local volunteers, would have completed the first day of ring and tagging nestlings on the property. Sadly, no birds were captured at Dronfield during my stay there, but there is good potential to do a sucessful capture there in the near future. To make up for the fruitless effort spent on the vulture capture, we had a great evening of socialising and talking raptor and vulture conservation. It still amazes me how people with common interests can get along like a house on fire without having met before and it was only lack of sleep that finally forced me to retreat to bed at about 10.30pm, totally knackered!<br />
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</div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/StDc5390MkI/AAAAAAAAAH0/7b-nip30jss/s1600-h/Supper+at+Dronfield+with+Hawk+Conservancy_8.10.09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img $r="true" border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/StDc5390MkI/AAAAAAAAAH0/7b-nip30jss/s400/Supper+at+Dronfield+with+Hawk+Conservancy_8.10.09.jpg" /></a><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Socialising with members of The Hawk Conservancy Trust</span><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">On Friday morning, I left the guesthouse we were staying at early to visit Kamfersdam just outside Kimberley on the national road leading north to Johannesburg. This site is world-renowned for the establishment of the first man-made breeding island, established by friend and colleague Mark Anderson with the support of large business in Kimberley about 2 years ago. The site has been a great success and several thousand <strong>Lesser Flamingo</strong> pairs have bred successfully on the island since, making it the first substantial breeding site for this species in South Africa and the third most important breeding site for the species globally. This site is however under considerable pressure from sewage effluent and other developments which have received extensive coverage in the local and international media over the last 18 months. This resulted in Mark resigning as Ornithologist at NCape NC, but also contributed to him being offered the position as Chief Executive of BirdLife South Arica about a year ago. For more informatio about the site and any issues, have a look at <a href="http://www.savetheflamingo.co.za/">http://www.savetheflamingo.co.za/</a> <br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/StDfS5u9onI/AAAAAAAAAH8/KUsQZVB-SYw/s1600-h/Kamfersdam,+Kimberley_9.10.09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img $r="true" border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/StDfS5u9onI/AAAAAAAAAH8/KUsQZVB-SYw/s320/Kamfersdam,+Kimberley_9.10.09.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Lesser Flamingoes feeding at Kamfersdam with breeding </span><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">island in the background</span><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">The Forum met on Friday morning and our fieldworkers and SANParks were also able to discuss and sort out some challenges with regard to the two research projects we have initiated this year at the Kgalagadi TFCA and the recently established Mokala National Park, south of Kimberley. With the vulture still not obliging by about 3pm, Ronelle finally dropped me at the airport and I returned to Johannesburg late afternoon.<br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">As usual, there were lots of other birds to be seen and recorded in and around Kimberley and I was able to confirm my first records of both<strong> Eurasian Bee-eater</strong>, <strong>African Cuckoo</strong> and <strong>Rufous-cheeked Nightjar</strong> at Dronfield for the summer. many of the resident birds were actively breeding and nests of <strong>Ashy Tit</strong>, <strong>Red-eyed Bulbul</strong> and <strong>Golden-tailed Woodpecker</strong> were easily located. I was also able to photograph a pair of <strong>Greater Striped Swallows</strong> collecting mud at a waterhole to build their nest.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/StAvKHe1z7I/AAAAAAAAAHk/-vj5Ht9Uan4/s1600-h/Greater+Striped+Swallows-Nest-material+collecting_9.10.09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img $r="true" border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/StAvKHe1z7I/AAAAAAAAAHk/-vj5Ht9Uan4/s320/Greater+Striped+Swallows-Nest-material+collecting_9.10.09.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-size: x-small;">Greater Stripe Swallow pair collecting nesting material</span></strong><br />
</div><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">The co-operative work between the Hawk Conservancy Trust and Mark and his team form EWT-BoPWG/BLSA has already paid good dividends and I am sure that it will go from stregnth to strength. Here to hoping that there will be sufficient time for me to participate in the entire weekend of fieldwork at Dronfield next year!<br />
</div>Andre Bothahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02943491875397061249noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4329314609615100391.post-27151115050546118472009-10-03T08:22:00.006+02:002009-10-03T12:20:17.263+02:00Keeping a look-out for Feathered International Arrivals<div align="justify">This is the time of year when raptorphiles in Africa keep their <img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 277px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5388270468940973490" border="0" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/Ssb7cXb0RbI/AAAAAAAAAFs/OsS6_FkizfQ/s320/Honey+Buzzard1-MkuzeGR.jpg" />eyes peeled for the arrival of the first over-wintering migratory raptors that arrive here from their breeding grounds in Europe and Asia. Of course, we here in southern Africa get to see some of these arrivals last and the spectacle of large flocks of migratory raptors that is fairly common further north on the continent are not often seen down here with the exception of the smaller migratory falcons (kestrels). A number of species such as Greater Spotted Eagle <em>Aquila clanga </em>and Long-legged Buzzard <em>Buteo rufinus</em> also do not migrate as far south and over-winter further north in Africa, seldom making an appearance down here. Palearctic migratory raptors that are however regularly recorded in southern Africa include Steppe Eagle <em>Aquila nipalensis</em>, Lesser Spotted Eagle <em>Aquila pomarina</em>, Steppe Buzzard <em>Buteo buteo</em>, Osprey <em>Pandion haliaetus</em>, Black Kite <em>Milvus migrans</em> and no less than three Harriers <em>Circus spp. </em>Western Honey Buzzard <em>Pernis apivorus</em> (pic right) is another migrant that was previously considered rare in southern Africa, but have been regularly recorded in recent years. Then there are also a number of migratory Falcon species of which the Amur Falcon <em>Falco amurensis</em>, Red-footed Falcon <em>Falco vespertinus</em> and Lesser Kestrel <em>Falco naumanni</em> are probably best known.<br /></div><div align="justify"><br />Not all migratory raptors recorded in southern Africa migrate to the Palearctic region, however. Wahlberg's Eagle <em>Aquila wahlbergi</em> for example is an intra-African migrant that arrives in the region from mid-August and starts breeding shortly after their arrival. I recorded quite a few active nests of this species during my 2-day visit to the southern Kruger National Park earlier this week.</div><br /><br /><div align="justify">Migratory raptors tend to mostly migrate by day and especially the larger species rely on the lift provided by thermals to soar to great heights before heading north or south, depending on their intended destination. Large concentrations of these birds are found in areas where migratory routes converge or where geographical features limit their options with regard to which routes to take. Although I have not yet been fortunate enough to witness these mass congregations of birds at areas such as Eilat in Israel or at a number of other spots on the Mediterranean, it certainly is on my list of things to do. Because of the lack of lift from thermals over large bodies of water such as the ocean, many raptors either avoid flying over such areas or depend on "island hopping" or making use of islands in the ocean as stop-overs before continuing their journey. </div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify"></div><div align="justify"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SscP1BO_u1I/AAAAAAAAAF8/_p_FxUiE1hM/s1600-h/Amur+Falcon_AdM_QQNP,+Feb09.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 253px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5388292882710903634" border="0" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SscP1BO_u1I/AAAAAAAAAF8/_p_FxUiE1hM/s320/Amur+Falcon_AdM_QQNP,+Feb09.jpg" /></a>One exception to this rule is the Amur Falcon (male in flight pictured right) which is believed to cover the entire distance from the Indian sub-continent to the coast of East Africa in a non-stop flight of almost 6000km over the Indian Ocean, the longest unbroken migratory flight known by any raptor species! This is just part of their very long migratory route from Eastern China and Mongolia where they breed to their wintering grounds on the grasslands and savanna of southern Africa. Due to this very long route, they are often the last migratory raptors to arrive in southern Africa, often in the first days of December only. </div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify"></div><div align="justify"></div><div align="justify">Red-footed Falcons migrate south from their breeding grounds in central and eastern Europe and Asia and often cross the Mediterranean in a non-stop flight. Researchers from BirdLife Hungary are currently studying the migratory patterns of this species using satellite tracking and eight birds have been fitted with ptt's to follow their movements. You can now follow these birds on their southward migration clicking on this link: <a href="http://www.falcoproject.hu/en/content/show?dattype=sat_birds">http://www.falcoproject.hu/en/content/show?dattype=sat_birds</a> , just remember to scroll on the date at the bottom to look at the daily progress they are making. We here in southern Africa are very interested in finding out where the Red-footed Falcon over-winters as this species has to date been very poorly represented in our Annual Roost Counts and it would be great to get an idea of where most of these birds spend their time here.</div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/Ssb7bV5YIhI/AAAAAAAAAFc/wjHu92Kxon8/s1600-h/Roost.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 214px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5388270451348218386" border="0" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/Ssb7bV5YIhI/AAAAAAAAAFc/wjHu92Kxon8/s320/Roost.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><div align="justify">All three the small migratory falcons that over-winter in southern Africa congregate in large numbers and hunt for insects and other prey over the African veld. At night, they roost in large, often exotic trees such as bluegums and tall pines and these roosts can in some cases contain thousands of birds. It is quite a spectacle, especially in late summer when they come in to roost after sunset, just before it gets really dark as they mill above the roost tree, giving their shrill calls which can at times be quite deafening! Then, as if someone gave a signal they will go down into the tree to jostle for a perch to sleep on. It is obviously better to find a spot fairly high up as you can imagine what happens at night with a thousand of your mates sleeping above you after a day of feeding! </div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify"><br />This habit of roosting in such large numbers together, provides us in southern Africa with an ideal opportunity to get an estimate of the global population size of these three species. There is currently quite a network of volunteers, mostly based in South Africa, that participate in our Annual Roost Count at almost 90 known roost sites on the Highveld, the Free State, Karoo and elsewhere. If you want to know more about these counts or results from previous year's efforts, visit <a href="http://www.kestreling.com/">http://www.kestreling.com/</a> , a site managed by the coordinator of the EWT-Birds of Prey Working Group's Migratory Kestrel Project (MKP), Anthony van Zyl. </div><div align="justify"><br /> </div><div align="justify"></div><div align="justify"></div><div align="justify"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/Ssb7ck15SPI/AAAAAAAAAF0/_nLtf0n70zE/s1600-h/Kestrel+Roost+Sign_BoPWG.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 214px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5388270472540014834" border="0" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/Ssb7ck15SPI/AAAAAAAAAF0/_nLtf0n70zE/s320/Kestrel+Roost+Sign_BoPWG.jpg" /></a>Many of these roosts are located in urban areas as the birds probably consider it a safer option to spend the night in an urban area where there are potentially fewer predators that may disturb or try to make a meal of them. This can cause problems however as the falcons tend to make quite a mess and the ground under these roosts often look as if its covered by snow at the end of summer. We have received quite a few complaints about this over the years, especially when the scare about avian influenza was at its peak. There is however no evidence that these little raptors play any role in the spread of the disease and the biggest issue is normally the mess caused by their droppings and, at times, the noise levels at the roosts which can sometimes continue well into the night. </div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify"></div><div align="justify"></div><div align="justify">We are aware of quite a few instances where roosting trees have been chopped down and removed because of this. To attempt to address this, the MKP has designed an attractive sign which can be erected at the various roosts informing people of the significance of such sites and also providing more information on the birds and their migratory routes. Communities, municipalities and bird clubs are encouraged to have these signs made and erected at roosts that occur in their area and we happily provide the proofs to those that are interested in doing so.<br /></div><div align="justify">Apart from the loss of roosting sites for some, migratory raptors also face a range of other dangers during their travels. Inclement weather and severe storms could delay migration for several days, while some birds could easily be blown off course. For species such as Amur Falcon a storm at sea could result in the death of many birds if they cannot avoid it or find a place to land and rest. There are few records of these falcons descending on ships in large numbers and roosting on every available perch under such circumstances.</div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify"></div><div align="justify"></div><div align="justify">By far the most upsetting of these threats is the danger posed by "hunters" in certain areas of the Mediterranean that derive pleasure from shooting large numbers of migratory raptors and other birds out of the sky, often just for the fun of it. Although the EU has implemented strict legislation banning the shooting of these birds, many people still consider it their cultural right to do so and thousands of birds are lost annually during the north- and southward migrations. Bird conservationists, working with local police, often put their own lives at risk to try and apprehend illegal hunters and often camp at key sites to attempt these shootings from taking place. Despite this, many birds are still killed. Examples of these massacres can be seen on the following video-links:</div><div align="justify"></div><ul><li><div align="justify"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nIM4UIM3kCs&feature=sdig&et=1254126009.22">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nIM4UIM3kCs&feature=sdig&et=1254126009.22</a></div></li><li><div align="justify"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nz2qjQHO4kE&feature=sdig&et=1254126009.22">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nz2qjQHO4kE&feature=sdig&et=1254126009.22</a> </div></li></ul><div align="justify"></div><div align="justify">Considering the long distance that these birds cover and the dangers they face during migration, they deserve special protection across their entire range. A number of migratory raptors are currently listed as globally threatened and protected under the International Convention on Migratory Species: Raptors to which South Africa became a signatory in 2008.<br /></div><div align="justify"><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div align="justify"><br /><br /></div><div align="justify"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/Ssb7ck15SPI/AAAAAAAAAF0/_nLtf0n70zE/s1600-h/Kestrel+Roost+Sign_BoPWG.jpg"></a></div>Andre Bothahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02943491875397061249noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4329314609615100391.post-16676914860184016962009-10-01T08:21:00.016+02:002009-10-02T18:38:15.248+02:00Sponsors put up their hands to support Rhino conservation in South Africa<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SsYCcTbhHOI/AAAAAAAAAE0/JDastXchUkw/s1600-h/Copy+of+03.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 240px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387996689470659810" border="0" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SsYCcTbhHOI/AAAAAAAAAE0/JDastXchUkw/s320/Copy+of+03.JPG" /></a>Rhino poaching in South Africa has escalated to alarming levels over the last 24 months with a high degree of sophistication that seems to characterise a lot of the incidents reported during this period. Although poaching in some incidents still happen in the familiar fashion of armed poachers moving into an area on foot, tracking and then shooting their quarry, modern-day poachers make use of equipment such as helicopters, night vision, silent weapons and veterinary drugs to kill rhino and harvest the horns. Horns that are removed are often rapidly transported to the nearest international airport and could be at their intended destination within 24 hours of removal. Most of these find their way to markets in the Far East where it is incorrectly reputed to be a powerful aphrodisiac and it is now also believed to cure cancer in certain countries.<br /><br />Statistics reveal that more than 120 rhino were poached in South Africa during 2008. Considering the time of year and the tally so far, it is likely that the number of animals killed in the country in 2009 can equal or exceed that of 2008. Similar trends have been experienced in Zimbabwe where Black Rhino in certain areas currently face the threat of almost complete eradication despite brave efforts by rangers to stem the onslaught. A major area of concern that has been clearly illustrated with several successful poaching attempts on game farms and lodges in Gauteng, Northwest and the bushveld of Limpopo, is the vulnerability of the private sector to this threat. It is quite amazing that some private land-owners are prepared to pay in excess of R0.5m for a single White Rhino, but then often neglect to implement even the most basic of security measures to ensure that the animal is not poached.<br /><br /><div align="justify"></div>Another loophole identified and used by rhino horn traders is that of the trophy hunting industry where they have inflated the going price for a trophy animal to the extent that the traditional trophy hunter from the US, Europe or elsewhere can no longer afford it. Traders are quite happy to pay more than R1m per trophy hunt, arrive in the country and shoot a rhino, only to lob off the horns, stuff them in a bag and exit the country with a permit that legally entitles them to do so. One can only imagine what the return on investment is on the sale of such horns. Fortunately, legislation has now been amended to address this and it will hopefully not recur during the next hunting season.<br /><br />This is of course not the first time that rhino in South Africa have faced this threat. During the late 1980's and early 1990's a similar threat was impacting rhino and elephant populations in southern Africa on a similar, if not larger, scale. Timeous action and the implementation of effective measures to curb this threat at the time resulted in the effective eradication thereof to the extent where it was no longer considered a significant threat by 1997.<br /><br /><br /><br /><div align="justify"></div>A vital part of this intervention was the improvement in the level of training of Field Rangers and equipping them with the appropriate skills and tools to take on armed poachers on an equal footing, but with the full backing of the legal system. This training was standardised and norms set for the entire sub-region through the establishment of the Game Rangers Training Co-ordination Group in 1990. This group enjoyed the full support of all southern African formal (national and provincial), private and NGO conservation bodies and also worked closely with the Endangered Species Protection Unit of the SAPS to effectively address this threat at all levels. I was fortunate to chair this group from 1997-1999 and am proud to say that the training curriculum developed at the time still forms the broad framework according to which Field Ranger training is conducted throughout the SADC-region and at the Southern African Wildlife College in particular.<br /><br />I believe that <a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SsRO7MQp7PI/AAAAAAAAAEk/UaXlGtHaMg0/s1600-h/Copy+of+Musketry+training_SANParks+Field+Rangers_Jun09_Andre+Botha.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 425px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 236px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387517833052286194" border="0" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SsRO7MQp7PI/AAAAAAAAAEk/UaXlGtHaMg0/s320/Copy+of+Musketry+training_SANParks+Field+Rangers_Jun09_Andre+Botha.jpg" /></a>we can once again effectively curb this new surge in rhino poaching by working together in partnership, sharing knowledge and expertise and adapting our training and operations to effectively address the new, more sophisticated approach of poachers. The Game Rangers Association of Africa (GRAA) is in the fortunate position to already be assisting in this regard through a fantastic sponsorship received from the Liberty Wildlife Foundation based in the Netherlands.<br /><br />The Foundation has pledged a sponsorship in excess of R1m a year for the next few years for the training and recruitment of approximately 100 new Field Rangers per year to augment the current corps of rangers operating in national parks and provincial reserves in South Africa. It is also hoped to expand our training focus to address some of the needs in the private sector by training Field Rangers for these smaller establishments in due course. The GRAA, in partnership with the SAWC and AFRTS, are currently busy with training the first 60 of these new rangers who will be employed by SANParks once they complete their training on the 10th of October 2009. An additional 40 rangers will then be trained and deployed in the Ukuhlamba-Drakensberg and Lesotho before the end of 2009. Another vital component of this initiative is to also expand on the existing group of qualified training personnel through identifying and training up more trainers.<br /><br /><div align="justify"></div><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 213px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5388018535806112290" border="0" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SsYWT7XxkiI/AAAAAAAAAE8/94LzGftHpGc/s320/NATURA+GROUP+1.jpg" />The Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT), GRAA and WESSA also initiated a Rhino Security Workshop which was hosted by SANParks at Skukuza in June 2009 during which a draft strategy to address the current threat of poaching was further discussed. This workshop also involved a range of other role-players from both the formal and private sectors and specific actions were agreed upon to take the process further.<br /><br /><div align="justify">One of the major stumbling blocks to implementing this strategy was securing sufficient funding to employ a project coordinator for the new initiative known as <strong>"Strengthening the Security of Rhino in South Africa"</strong>. This initiative will focus on three main activities, namely:</div><div align="justify"></div><ol><li><div align="justify">law enforcement through the recently initiated Poaching Investigators Crime Forum,</div></li><li><div align="justify">tracking the trade in rhino horn through an existing project coordinated by TRAFFIC and</div></li><li><div align="justify">working to ensure the <em>in situ</em> security of rhino, especially on private land.</div></li></ol><p align="justify">Fortunately, the SA Mint has stepped up to the plate and pledged its support to this vitally important project through donating a significant portion of the proceeds from the sales of its latest series of gold coins, known as the Natura series which depicts the White Rhino in its design and are really very attractive. This series is apparently very popular with collectors worldwide and have won numerous international awards. It is believed that more than R0.5m can potentially be raised with this initiative which would be sufficient to launch the above project within the next few months. Anyone interested in finding out more about these coins can contact the SA Mint as <a href="mailto:numismatics@samint.co.za">numismatics@samint.co.za</a> Your support for this important cause will be appreciated.</p><p align="justify">I was fortunate to represent the GRAA and attend the minting of the first of these coins by the Minister of Water Affairs and the Environment, Ms. Byelwa Sonjica at the SA Mint on Wednesday and her very vocal support for this initiative and the improvement of rhino security in South Africa in general, was very encouraging. Substantive support from government and donors will go a long way to assist in mobilising an effective reaction to the current poaching threat facing rhino and other wildlife in the region. I look forward to seeing this challenge being successfully conquered for the second time in twenty years and to be able to contribute in some way. </p><p align="justify">It is also encouraging to note that both SANParks and KZN Wildlife have had recent successes in apprehending poachers in the Kruger National Park and Zululand reserves, an indication that the tide against rhino poaching is starting to turn.</p>Andre Bothahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02943491875397061249noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4329314609615100391.post-34234529493410172452009-09-27T09:41:00.006+02:002009-09-27T11:10:00.230+02:00Bling and colour season for southern Africa's vulturesAt this time of year, vulture fieldworkers in southern Africa are preparing themselves to commence with the next season during which a considerable number of vulture nestlings will be fitted with metal rings and wing-tags before they are large enough to fly and leave the nest. This is part of the the colour-marking programme for these birds which is coordinated by the Birds of Prey Working Group of the EWT and has been running for the last 4 years. The main purpose of ringing and tagging vultures is to identify individual birds and to monitor their movements through the re-sighting of these birds as they forage throughout their range.<br /><br />The implementation of the programme was preceded by an exhaustive assessment process during which the method was first tested on vultures in captivity to ensure that it is safe for the birds and does not cause any physical harm or impede their ability to fly and forage. After this was confirmed, we also fitted tags to a small sample of nestlings in the Kgalagadi and near Kimberley to see whether this process would cause abandonment of nests or rejection of chicks by their parents. To date, no such negative behaviour has been observed and the extensive number of re-sightings of tagged fledglings subsequently has also backed up our initial observations.<br /><br />A great opportunity to also test the method on free-flying wild birds presented itself when 16 vultures were saved from a mass-poisoning event that occurred near Hoedspruit in the Lowveld in October 2005. After successful treatment at the Moholoholo Rehabilitation Centre for about two weeks, the 15 African White-backed Vultures and a single immature Hooded Vulture were tagged, ringed and released on the 5th of November 2005, all bearing tags with the alphabetical code A followed by three digits carrying a unique number for each bird. Some of these birds were re-sighted the very next day at the Moholoholo vulture restaurant and all of them were re-sighted somewhere in the Lowveld/Kruger National Park within the first 12 months after they were released. Some of these birds have been sighted more than 200 times over the last four years!<br /><br />Based on our assessment and the recommendations from vulture researchers elsewhere in the world, the method was approved for general use in the colour-marking of vultures in southern Africa at our Annual Conference in 2006. This method has since been implemented at almost 20 sites across southern Africa, from the Etosha National Park in Namibia, to the Potberg Cape Vulture colony in the Western Cape and the Lowveld in the east. It also includes countries such as Swaziland and Botswana. Zambia is also currently considering the option to join the programme. Each site where tagging is done, has received its own alphabetical code, e.g. B = Magaliesberg-region, W = Kimberley and E = Etosha. It is thus fairly easy to find out where a bird was marked regardless of where it is seen subsequently.<br /><br /><br /><p><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 354px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 248px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5386049781408061042" border="0" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/Sr8XvVtl1nI/AAAAAAAAAEU/n90nj9w38aM/s320/A099+re-sighted_Moholoholo_19.9.08.jpg" /><br /><br />To date, there are more than 1900 marked vultures on our database. Most of these birds were ringed and tagged in the nest at various sites. However, we have also been able to successfully capture and tag considerable numbers of free-flying vultures using a mass-capture technique that was first successfully introduced at the Rare and Endangered Species Trust in Namibia in 2004 and has subsequently been used to good effect at a number of sites in South Africa. At one such an event in February 2007, we were able to ring and tag almost 80 vultures in about 2.5 hours at Moholoholo! This method is however only used outside of the vultures' breeding season so as to minimize stress on breeding birds.<br /><br />The implementation of this method was also accompanied by a concerted effort to promote the reporting of re-sighting of tagged birds by conservationists and the public over the last 4 years. This has worked extremely well and we currently have almost 7000 records on the re-sightings database with some exceptional information on vulture movements having been obtained. The map below (click on the image to enlarge) gives an idea of some of the records that have been obtained over the last 4 years and reflects the extensive areas that some of these birds cover and move in their search for food, especially in the first few years of their lives.<br /><br />The longest distance moved by a single bird on record is that of a first-year African White-backed Vulture that was tagged in the nest by Abrie Maritz in the southern Kgalagadi and which was recorded in the South Luangwa National Park in eastern Zambia about 8 months after fledging. This represents a straight-line distance of almost 2000km! Several birds from the same area have also been seen in northern Botswana and the Caprivi in Namibia. On the recent International Vulture Awareness Day on the 5th of September 2009, another fledling from this region (K374) was recorded by a group of vulture enthusiasts at the Kempenfeldt Vulture restaurant near Dundee in KwaZulu-Natal, the first ever recorded movement of a vulture between these two areas!<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/Sr8Xux7QgGI/AAAAAAAAAEM/bFBX19lTh_k/s1600-h/Notable+tagging+re-sightings.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 302px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5386049771801706594" border="0" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/Sr8Xux7QgGI/AAAAAAAAAEM/bFBX19lTh_k/s320/Notable+tagging+re-sightings.jpg" /></a> What these recorded movements underline, is the incredible mobility of vultures and the extensive distances that they can cover in their search for food. This poses special challenges to conservationists who are working to protect these birds and has had a considerable impact on our approach in this regard. The only way to work effectively to conserve these birds in southern Africa and beyond, is to work cooperatively across provincial, national and even regional boundaries and to approach vulture conservation in Africa from a continental approach, involving as many partners and supporters from all the relevant range countries as possible to work towards a common goal: ensuring that vultures and other scavenging birds remain a regular feature of the African skies and landscapes for generations to come. </p><p>Other species have also subsequently been tagged, but on a far more limited basis related to specific studies in a particular area. Species that have been tagged in addition to vultures include: African Fish Eagles (Gariep and Breede River systems, N & WCape), Verraux's Eagles (WCape), Secretarybirds (Gauteng, NCape and Free State) and Marabou Storks (Swaziland and Lowveld).</p><p>I would like to wish all the fieldworkers well for this season and look forward to participating in some tagging in Zululand and elsewhere in the coming weeks.<br /></p>Andre Bothahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02943491875397061249noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4329314609615100391.post-52287031012059876052009-09-23T19:17:00.000+02:002009-09-23T22:16:39.103+02:00Two days of summer comes to the Western Cape in September<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SrpY-_3IcrI/AAAAAAAAAEE/7NbnXDGqxhY/s1600-h/Table+Mountain_23.9.2209.2.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 435px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 285px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5384714143792657074" border="0" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SrpY-_3IcrI/AAAAAAAAAEE/7NbnXDGqxhY/s320/Table+Mountain_23.9.2209.2.jpg" /></a><br />The last two days found me on my first trip to the Western Cape for this year, quite unusual as I normally get to come here a lot earlier. However, circumstances didn't allow for it and I'm quite happy that this opportunity seems to have over-lapped with apparently the first bit of decent weather with temperatures that resemble that of summer, that's if the comments from the locals is to be believed. The sunshine and warm temperatures with little wind is a pleasure compared to my experience at the Pan-African Ornithological Congress at the same time last year when we had a full week of strong winds, rain, snow and freezing temperatures! Fortunately, in the winelands of the Cape, that is all the excuse you need to gain strength from the fruit of the vine to see you through and we certainly gained strength a lot last year!<br /><br />The main aim of this visit was to meet with some project executants and sponsors to plan activities for the next few months and to ensure that there is delivery on what we have committed to. I am also ken to extend funding from one donor and to transfer the funding to another, much larger project in future years. Sounds as if they are not unhappy with the suggestion, but a final decision will only come later.<br /><br />The Breede River Fish Eagle Project work for the third season will commence in the next 10 days or so and this will wrap up the activities of this project by the end of February next year. All that will be left to do then is to obtain the results of the analysis of blood samples collected from Fish Eagle chicks in the project area that were sent to the Clemson University in the US for processing. Once this has been received, the project's final reports and papers can be drafted and the relevant information disseminated. Dr. Andrew Jenkins, who has been involved with this initiative from the start, will also be undertaking the bulk of the work this season. The sponsor of this project also seems happy with the plans for this season.<br /><br /><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SrpY-UoG8lI/AAAAAAAAAD8/tnnNPAevvZI/s1600-h/African+Penguin_Juvenile_Boulders,+WCape_22.9.2009.2.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 236px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5384714132186919506" border="0" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SrpY-UoG8lI/AAAAAAAAAD8/tnnNPAevvZI/s320/African+Penguin_Juvenile_Boulders,+WCape_22.9.2009.2.jpg" /></a><br />Apart from a variety of other meetings and discussions, I also had a quick opportunity yesterday morning to visit the Boulders African Penguin site near Simonstown where most of the birds are busy moulting. Not great for getting good pics, but at least this youngster provided an opportunity to get something that can at least be used for general entertainment. Of interest was a group of gentlemen from Egypt that also visited the birds, one of which considered it his mission to jump up and down and make as much noise as possible to try and get some reaction from the birds. He obviously did, but also got an earful about disturbing birds and the illegality of it. I would have liked to jump on him to see how he reacted!</div><div></div><div>In between all the work activity, I was also ble to add quite a few birds to my southern African yearlist. Species such as <strong>Cape Francolin, Cape Sugarbird, Orange-breasted Sunbird, Southern Black Korhaan, Bank Cormorant </strong>and an un-expected <strong>White-chinned Petrel </strong>that ventured very close to land in quite a stiff south-easter were some of the species to boost the 2009 total for the region to well beyond 600 species.</div><div></div><div>All in all a fairly successful two days, but I look forward to getting back home and putting my feet up, for a day or so at least. Tomorrow we commemorate 'Heritage Day' in South Africa, but it is more widely known as 'National Braai Day' which is very likely what we will be doing at home once I get back. Up at 4am to catch the plane and try and work out how to get the rental car back to the airport with all of the road deviations around the airport. Should be interesting...<br /><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SrpY98MPwfI/AAAAAAAAAD0/C_lmapLpRac/s1600-h/African+Penguin_Juvenile_Boulders,+WCape_22.9.2009.2.jpg"></a><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div>Andre Bothahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02943491875397061249noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4329314609615100391.post-70278889314466585622009-09-20T08:15:00.000+02:002009-09-20T10:25:16.554+02:00Unexpected piece of Paradise on the upper Olifants River<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SrXKHTQtyNI/AAAAAAAAADs/Ppbbo-Xw-ag/s1600-h/Upper+Olifants+River-Bezuidenhoutshoek+Farm_19.9.2009.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 355px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 257px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5383431156369574098" border="0" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SrXKHTQtyNI/AAAAAAAAADs/Ppbbo-Xw-ag/s320/Upper+Olifants+River-Bezuidenhoutshoek+Farm_19.9.2009.jpg" /></a>About a month ago, I was contacted by David Miles via e-mail, as a result of some of the publicity from the International Vulture Awareness Day, with an inquiry on whether I would be able to advise a friend of his on the establishment of a vulture feeding site on his game farm near Middelburg in Mpumalanga, South Africa. I agreed and an arrangement was made for us to meet at the Shell Ultra-City outside Middelburg at 08:00 on the 19th of September. This is where Dave introduced me to Eric Dorner, one of the co-owners of the farm Bezuidenhoutshoek and from where we proceeded to the farm to talk about vulture restaurants.<br /><br />Having grown up on the eastern Highveld of South Africa and also working there for some time on various occasions, I must admit that it is not one of the areas that rates very highly on my personal scale of favourites from an environmental perspective, especially at this time of year when it seems mostly dull, windy and dusty and where veld-fires often turn large areas into blackened wastelands of soot and little else. The fact that huge tracts of land in this area have been transformed into either mealiefields or open-cast coal mines does in no way contribute positively to the picture of this area that comes to mind when the names Witbank, Middelburg, etc. are mentioned. It was with exactly such a picture in mind, that I followed Dave and Eric down the road to the entrance gate of the farm. The initial impression of the farm seemed to confirm my expectations as we drove through dull brown grassveld interspersed with the odd stand of exotic Black Wattle with a few obligatory Blesbok completing the picture of a highveld game farm.<br /><br />However, we started to descend into a bit of a valley and here and there a few more indigenous trees started to appear. As we rounded a bend a short while later, I saw a large cliff in the distance that was very obviously part of a fairly deep river valley that in no way resembled anything that I could have expected. It was as if I was heading down into the Lowveld not more than 90 minutes' drive from Johannesburg! We eventually arrived at Eric's house and we had time to chat. I learnt that the farm is situated close to the confluence of the Olifants River and one of its major tributaries in the upper-catchment, the Little Olifants River. It is no secret that I have a long-standing relationship with the Olifants River and am currently involved in an annual survey of Pel's Fishing Owl along this river in the Kruger National Park which has this year been expanded to include a range of other fish-eating bird species too. The Olifants River is probably one of the river systems in South Africa that is experiencing the most impact from a range of anthropogenic factors of which extraction of water for a range of uses as well as pollution from mining and other activities are the most important. The project I am working on has already identified a decline of almost 40% in the populations of <strong>Pel's Fishing Owl</strong> and <strong>African Fish Eagles</strong> along this river in the Kruger National Park, whilst the numbers of other larger fish-eating birds are also quite low. It is also on this river where almost 200 Nile crocodiles have died from pansteatitis in the Bangu Gorge on the eastern border of Kruger.<br /><br />It was therefore a great opportunity to get a look at a section of the upper-catchment of this river. Eric built a house that has a deck over-looking the river (see first photograph) where we finally were able to stand and chat about the farm and the primary reason I was there, to provide advise on the establishment of a vulture feeding site. While we were talking, Eric suddenly pointed down to the river and mentioned that he thought there may be an otter moving in the water below. We scanned the area and were very chuffed to locate the animal in question as soon as it surfaced. As it climbed out on a flat rock in the water, we noted another otter swimming towards the first, and then another, and then another until there were nine in total! What made the sighting even more special, was the fact that these were <strong>Spotted-necked Otters</strong> and not the more common and widespread Cape Clawless Otter.<br /><p align="left"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SrXKG0COO9I/AAAAAAAAADk/qgsPZnG-xxk/s1600-h/Spotted-necked+Otters_Bezuidenhoutshoek+GF,+Mpumalanga_19.9.09.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 347px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 210px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5383431147987286994" border="0" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SrXKG0COO9I/AAAAAAAAADk/qgsPZnG-xxk/s320/Spotted-necked+Otters_Bezuidenhoutshoek+GF,+Mpumalanga_19.9.09.jpg" /></a></p><div>After this excitement and completing our discussion, Eric suggested that we go for a drive to go and look at some sites on the farm that could be used as a feeding site for vultures. We used the farm's game-viewing vehicle and Eric And Dave pointed out certain places of interest as we moved along. They were particularly excited by the sightings of two leopard on the farm earlier in the week and we also found some spoor of one of these animals at one of the spots where we stopped. During the discussion, they mentioned that a neighbouring farm was called "Aasvoelkrans" (Vulture Cliff) and it was quite easy to identify the cliff in question which most likely contained a vulture roost or small breeding colony years ago (pic below). I still need to take a look at the Cape Vulture site directory to see if this site is listed there, but am quite sure that this site was used by vultures previously.<br /><br /></div><div><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SrXJhK0E0AI/AAAAAAAAADU/cBDK99ZY_hw/s1600-h/Aasvoelkrans_Bezuidenhoutshoek_19.9.2009.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 377px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 275px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5383430501266935810" border="0" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SrXJhK0E0AI/AAAAAAAAADU/cBDK99ZY_hw/s320/Aasvoelkrans_Bezuidenhoutshoek_19.9.2009.jpg" /></a> </div><div>Another great feature of the area is the presence of two cycad species which are both specially protected. <em>Encephalartos lanatus</em> occurs in good numbers while <em>E. middelburgensis</em> is generally more rare. This farm is an important site providing protection for these plants which are often the target of illegal collectors. Although we didn't see a lot of game, there are good numbers of antelope such as <strong>Klipspringer, Eland, Kudu </strong>and others while wildebeest and zebra were also spotted.<br /><br /></div><div><div><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SrXJgJceT_I/AAAAAAAAADE/15pnz4dH5XE/s1600-h/Encephalartos+lanatus_Bezuidenhoutshoek,+Mpumalanga_19.9.2009.2.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 214px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5383430483719639026" border="0" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SrXJgJceT_I/AAAAAAAAADE/15pnz4dH5XE/s320/Encephalartos+lanatus_Bezuidenhoutshoek,+Mpumalanga_19.9.2009.2.jpg" /></a><br />From a birding perspective, the area provides an interesting range of species due to the diversity of habitats on the farm and the checklist currently stands at 227 species. During my short visit to the area, we spotted a breeding pair of <strong>Verraux's Eagles</strong>, <strong>African Fish Eagle</strong> on two occasions as well as a <strong>Secretarybird</strong> patrolling the veld, looking for food. There is a good chance that the latter is also breeding on the property. Dave also mentioned that they have previously recorded <strong>African Crowned Eagle</strong> in an area of montane forest on the farm and that <strong>Bateleur</strong> has also been recorded on two occasions over the last few years! Other birds of interest that we saw included <strong>Striped Pipit, Giant Kingfisher, Green-backed Heron, Mocking Cliff-chat </strong>and several others. <strong>African Finfoot</strong> is also regularly seen on the river and <strong>Southern Bald Ibis</strong> have bred on the cliffs along the river last year.<br /><br /><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SrXJf8B3P_I/AAAAAAAAAC8/RV9eBRRZiAw/s1600-h/Site+visit+to+Bezuidenhoutskloof_19.9.09.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 214px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5383430480118366194" border="0" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SrXJf8B3P_I/AAAAAAAAAC8/RV9eBRRZiAw/s320/Site+visit+to+Bezuidenhoutskloof_19.9.09.jpg" /></a>Although vultures are not regularly seen over the farm, I believe that, with a lot of patience and careful consideration of the management thereof, a feeding site could indeed attract vultures back to an area where they historically occurred and could fill a significant gap in the network of vulture restaurants. The fact that there is very little human activity or settlement in the immediate vicinity of the farm is also particularly encouraging. If Eric and his partner's approach to the management of the farm is anything to go by, the feeding site has every chance to succeed. At this stage, the farm does not facilitate visits by the general public, but there are plans to develop a small number of accommodation units that could be used in future. I am grateful for Dave and Eric inviting me and look forward to returning to the farm soon to discover even more of this little gem on the upper Olifants River.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Andre Bothahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02943491875397061249noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4329314609615100391.post-40220103686432119292009-09-18T16:22:00.000+02:002009-09-18T16:54:08.653+02:00Secretarybird ringing and tagging - GautengLate in August, the ornithologist from Gauteng Nature Conservation, Craig Whittington-Jones, asked me to assist with the ringing and tagging of two Secretarybird <em>Sagittarius serpentarius</em> nestlings. The chicks were well-grown and about two weeks from fledging from their nest in the Suikerbosrand Nature Reserve near Heidelberg. The purpose of fitting these birds with tags is very much the same as for the almost 1700 vultures that we have marked in the same manner in southern Africa over the last 3 seasons, namely to attempt to monitor the movements of the young birds once they have fledged and start foraging for themselves.<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SrOZI8DveNI/AAAAAAAAAC0/RKHsTHOcHbI/s1600-h/IMG_8424.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 213px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382814358477699282" border="0" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SrOZI8DveNI/AAAAAAAAAC0/RKHsTHOcHbI/s320/IMG_8424.jpg" /></a><br />A rehabilitated Secretarybird that I fitted with tags at the FreeMe Rehabilitation Centre in Fourways, Johannesburg about 2 years ago was released in the Dinokeng-area north of Pretoria a few days later. This bird was spotted at the OR Thambo International Airport about 3 months later and approximately 70kms from where it was released! Fortunately, it didn't stay there long before moving off again. It clearly realised the threat of being sucked into an airliner engine and decided to make a hasty departure.<br /><br /><br /><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SrOZIYhsh8I/AAAAAAAAACs/alDZzfh2jHQ/s1600-h/IMG_8443.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 213px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382814348939659202" border="0" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SrOZIYhsh8I/AAAAAAAAACs/alDZzfh2jHQ/s320/IMG_8443.jpg" /></a></div><div> </div><div>As raptors go, Secretarybirds are really a pleasure to work with as they are generally timid and not at all aggressive once you have them in hand. However, it is often quite a struggle to get to the birds in the nest as they prefer to build their large platform-nests on flat-topped thorny trees and shrubs that are quite a challenge to access. This nest was no exception, but we finally managed to get the chicks and bring them down to the ground where they could be ringed, tagged and measured before being returned to the nest. The entire process, once the chicks were on the ground, took no more than 10 minutes. <br /><br /><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SrOZH70tUEI/AAAAAAAAACk/rG4klCh_9Yc/s1600-h/IMG_8449.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 213px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382814341234774082" border="0" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SrOZH70tUEI/AAAAAAAAACk/rG4klCh_9Yc/s320/IMG_8449.jpg" /></a> </div><div>The two ladies in the group ooh-ed and aah-ed about the incredibly long eyelashes that these birds have. Rocky Horror Picture Show, eat your heart out!</div><div> </div><div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 213px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382814331706100738" border="0" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SrOZHYU5TAI/AAAAAAAAACc/e76cvqhLrcQ/s320/IMG_8467.jpg" /></div><div> </div><div>Once the work was completed, I carefully returned the two chicks back to the nest. I was also able to collect quite a few pellets that these birds regurgitate and also found a large eggshell that was handed to Craig. Analysis of the pellets can provide valuable information on the food that the parents bring to the nest to feed the chicks with. We were back in Johannesburg in less than 2.5 hours, not a bad day-trip and a fantastic excuse to get out of the smoggy city!<br /><br /><br /></div><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div>Andre Bothahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02943491875397061249noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4329314609615100391.post-53932245113014938932009-09-12T11:06:00.000+02:002009-09-12T12:24:54.204+02:00Blowing Hot and Cold<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/Sqt2evCMxMI/AAAAAAAAABw/azNkOqK9TJk/s1600-h/Monk%27s+Cowl+Sunrise_11.9.09.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 214px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5380524450218034370" border="0" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/Sqt2evCMxMI/AAAAAAAAABw/azNkOqK9TJk/s320/Monk%27s+Cowl+Sunrise_11.9.09.jpg" /></a><br /><div><br /><br /><div>The latter part of the week has been quite strange. I left Giant's Castle in temperatures close to 30 degrees C and headed to the Ongeluksnek Nature Reserve in the Eastern Cape via a quick visit to Andy Piper in Underberg. Andy is the wife of the late Prof. Steven Piper, one of the foremost vulture biologists/conservationists in the world, sadly and unexpectedly passed away in March this year. He was also a great friend, mentor and support to me over the last 10 years since I decided to make birds and bird conservation my main focus. Andy and I discussed the relocation of large volumes of material related to vultures and which Steven has meticulously collected over many years, to become part of the EWT-BoPWG archives. However, when we were done with our discussions, I noticed that the wind had turned and that temperatures had dropped considerably.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Travelling to Ongeluksnek via Matatiele, clouds starting moving in and I passed several veld-fires before reaching the reserve just before dark. Here I met Dean Peinke from EC Parks Board and we discussed the planned vulture feeding site to be established on the reserve. This discussion was continued the next morning with a group from the Parks Board, Conservation Department and a community based organisation which was very constructive and should see this site becoming a reality in the near future. A feeding site here is very improtant as it fills a considerable gap in the network of feeding sites which are strategically placed to benefit the endangered Bearded Vulture as well as a considerable number of Cape Vulture colonies. The weather however had by now changed dramatically and temperatures were hovering around freezing point, even when I finally headed off to Oribi Gorge by lunchtime. Low cloud and intermittent drizzle had by now wiped away any memories of the warm temperatures experienced earlier in the week.</div><br /><p align="right"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 214px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5380518241898034642" border="0" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/Sqtw1XPXddI/AAAAAAAAABo/Yr6R8IrlFcI/s320/Ongeluksnek_VR_9.9.09.jpg" /></p></div><br /><p></p><br /><p>The drive down to Oribi Gorge was marked by a sighting of 11 Denham's Bustard near Matatiele as they were foraging in a large burnt area, one of the fires that I passed the day before. I have not seen such a large number of birds before. Other birds seen along the route were both Blue and Southern Grey Crowned Crane and two sightings of the rare African Marsh Harrier. </p><br /><p>Although temperatures were warmer at Oribi Gorge, the overcast and drizzly conditions were very similar to that experienced at higher altitudes. Next morning, I met with Mike Neethling, a farmer from the area that runs a feeding site and has for many years been monitoring the Umtamvuna Cape Vulture breeding colony with Steven Piper. Mike will be responsible for the future monitoring of this colony with some staff from KZN Wildlife and it was good to spend some time with him to discuss options and plans for the future. We also visited his feeding site, but due to the low mist, could not see any birds there or get any views of the colony. Because the weather did not look like changing any time soon, I left the area and travelled to link up with the Bearded Vulture capture team at Monk's Cowl in the Drakensberg again.</p><p>The weather here was also not the kindest with low cloud and an icy wind prevailing for most of the morning before I headed back to Johannesburg.</p><br /><p></p>Andre Bothahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02943491875397061249noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4329314609615100391.post-72731050620010750582009-09-07T22:05:00.000+02:002009-09-23T19:16:21.371+02:00A day at Giant's Castle - BV's a-plenty!<p align="left"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SqVoyEuluCI/AAAAAAAAABg/L_ecTUahkK8/s1600-h/Bearded+Vulture_Sad_Giant%27s+Castle,+KZN_7.9.09.1.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 502px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 332px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5378820539435825186" border="0" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SqVoyEuluCI/AAAAAAAAABg/L_ecTUahkK8/s320/Bearded+Vulture_Sad_Giant%27s+Castle,+KZN_7.9.09.1.jpg" /></a></p><br /><br />Just had a great day in the Giant's Castle Reserve which forms part of the Ukuhlamba-Drakensberg Park working with one of our key projects, the Bearded Vulture Task Force, headed by Sonja Kruger from EKZN Wildlife, Ben and Shannon Hoffman and some volunteers attempting to catch and fit satellite transmitters to Bearded Vultures. A crew from the KykNet programme <em>Groen </em>were also present to film the activities to produce a programmeon the work of the BVTF.<br /><br />We were already up at the capture site by 05:15 this morning getting traps and food ready in the hope that we would be able to catch some birds. Not surprisingly, we were joined by at least 3 Bearded Vultures circling above us by 05:40. These birds clearly don't follow the books that profess that they only take to the wing much later in the day!<br /><br />Although we had several birds landing at or on traps, those that were ensnared unfortunately managed to wriggle free before we could get to them. However, it was still great to at times see as many as 8 Bearded's flying together and we estimate that there were at least 12 birds frequenting the site today. At times, we were observing as many as 8 birds of varying ages flying and circling the area! They were joined at various times by Cape Vultures, two Jackal Buzzards, the off Rock Kestrel and, of course, good numbers of White-necked Ravens who are ever-present. A lightning-fast appearance by a recently fledged Verraux's Eagle was later followed up by views of a single Peregrine and two Secretarybirds striding along a grassy slope.<br /><br />We will be trying again for a while early tomorrow morning after which I will be heading to the Eastern Cape.Andre Bothahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02943491875397061249noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4329314609615100391.post-90980234729688195372009-09-06T08:36:00.000+02:002009-09-06T09:09:29.957+02:00IVAD09 event at Vulture Programme near Pretoria<div><br /><br /><div><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SqNYg_ERpfI/AAAAAAAAABA/kYJIjjN8jKI/s1600-h/Afbeelding2.png"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 236px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 242px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5378239703718929906" border="0" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SqNYg_ERpfI/AAAAAAAAABA/kYJIjjN8jKI/s320/Afbeelding2.png" /></a> <img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 214px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5378246692025928450" border="0" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SqNe3wigCwI/AAAAAAAAABY/GmRovwr50ZE/s320/IVAD09_Hartbeespoort+event_5.9.09.jpg" /><br /></div><div>The first International Vulture Awareness Day has come and gone and I am proud to have been associated with the event and to have worked with great friends and partners worldwide in making the event a success. Thanks to all involved who signed up, participated and arranged an event or media coverage in the run-up to and on the day. I already can't wait for next year's event which will take place on <strong>S<em>eptember, 4th 2010</em>.</strong> Mark this date in your diary now!<br /></div><div>Personally, I was involved in quite a bit of activity during the last six days or so related to this event. Our media release produced a considerable number of articles in local newspapers, radio and we also did an insert on the Afrikaans satellite network <em>KykNet.</em> The insert features a new star and ambassador for vulture conservation, Cody, a 7-week old cape Vulture chick incubated and hatched at the Pretoria Zoo and now hand-reared by Kerri Wolter as part of the activities of her vulture programme near the Hartbeespoort-dam near Pretoria.</div><br /><div><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SqNavlCKceI/AAAAAAAAABI/FdOFj37jfQs/s1600-h/Cape+Vulture_Pullus_7wks_Hartbeespoort_5.9.09.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 238px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5378242153452040674" border="0" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SqNavlCKceI/AAAAAAAAABI/FdOFj37jfQs/s320/Cape+Vulture_Pullus_7wks_Hartbeespoort_5.9.09.jpg" /></a>On the 5th of September, an open day was held at the project's facilities which I attended and where Ipresented a lecture on vultures and vulture conservation issues worldwide. It was great to have the birds on hand to illustrate some of the points made in the talk in a practical manner and I trust that the good number of people that attended will have learnt and something of these fascinating creatures. The event was well-attended and also included a colouring-in competition for the children and it was great to see their fascination with the birds, especially came feeding time!<img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 377px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 284px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5378245327995913266" border="0" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SqNdoXIZxDI/AAAAAAAAABQ/JoBozN6x6Vw/s320/IMG_8529.jpg" /><br /></div><br /><div>The Vulcha Helpers were also well-represented and assisted Kerri on the day with logistics, providing meals and drinks and also selling a range of items to raise funds. This group has been active for over a year now and aims to re-establish the principle of volunteer work to benefit vultures at sites in the Magaliesberg and Northwest, South Africa and are doing good work. It is certainly great to see the enthusiasm of people such as Jeff Newman, Robyn Craven and others to assist with this important work.</div><br /><div>All-in-all a very enjoyable day! I did plan to go and have a look at the Scheerpoort Cape Vulture colony nearby, but the day was very hazy due to all the veld-fires burning in the area at the moment that views of the wild birds and their nesting sites would have been limited. Well, I'll just have to make up for the lack of wild birds during my fieldwork this coming week!</div><br /><div></div><br /><div><br /></div><br /><div></div></div></div>Andre Bothahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02943491875397061249noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4329314609615100391.post-29120443415850175962009-09-05T08:54:00.000+02:002009-09-05T09:07:12.704+02:00International Vulture Awareness Day - September 5th, 2009<div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SqILpqpHzVI/AAAAAAAAAAM/7cidyLci1xo/s1600-h/IVAD+logo.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 126px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377873715483102546" border="0" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SqILpqpHzVI/AAAAAAAAAAM/7cidyLci1xo/s320/IVAD+logo.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><div>Well, the big day is finally here and it's amazing to think that so many people and organisations across the world will be participating in this event. Have a look at <a href="http://www.ivad09.org/wp/">www.ivad09.org/wp/</a> to see how many people are participating in this important event.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>I will be joining the activities at Kerri Wolter's facility near the Hartbeespoort-dam near Pretoria, South Africa for a Public Day that sees her facilities open to the general public to come and view vultures and learn about the need to conserve them. I will do a talk or two about these birds on the day and also look forward to seeing the volunteers working for the "Vulcha Helpers" which was recently established.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Thereafter, I will be heading to the Scheerpoort Cape Vulture Colony to have a look at activities at this site which is the closest active breeding colony to the urban centres of Johannesburg and Pretoria.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Heading south-east to the Maloti-Drakensberg tomorrow for a week of vulture-focused fieldwork, so I'll be celebrating International Vulture Awareness Day for the next week at least!</div><div> </div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 463px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 340px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377875925997166194" border="0" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uDa_sJbKgVs/SqINqVcvnnI/AAAAAAAAAAU/xqbXRF_G8NI/s320/African+White-backed+Vulture_1st+year+Juv_Phabeni,+KNP_March+2009.jpg" /><br /><div></div></div>Andre Bothahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02943491875397061249noreply@blogger.com1