Restaurant News Issue #3 December 2015 In this Issue: Mockford Restaurant Electrocutions Near You! Interesting Resightings Mortality Report Reluctant Pilot - Part Two The Vulture App! In the Next Issue: Lead Poisoning The Importance of Water VulchApp - 6 months data Nest Robbing Poachers EDITORIAL: Welcome to the third issue of Restaurant News! We have had an overwhelmingly positive response to the publication, and it has led to the identification of some new restaurants, the identification of some threats that we have been able to address, and stimulated some restaurants back to life. Best Wishes for the Festive Season from the team! You can contribute, subscribe (or unsubscribe) to the newsletter by sending an email to: kerri.wolter@gmail.com Anyone is welcome to submit stories, photos, ideas, questions etc for inclusion and advertising opportunities are also available. Previous issues are available for download at: www.vulpro.com Edited by: Walter Neser. All Images Walter Neser unless otherwise specified. Produced by: Featured Restaurant: Mockford Farm By: Shaun & Yana Mockford Just a few km south of Polokwane in the Limpopo Province lies Mockford Farms, a family farm focused mainly around pig production since 1953. The restaurant was established by Peter Mockford in 1994 after seeing vultures feeding on a Kudu carcass on the property, and has been active ever since. This solved the carcass disposal problem for the piggery once and for all. The feeding site supplies food to the three largest remaining colonies of Cape Vultures, namely Blouberg, Kransberg and Manutsa. Between these three colonies, there are an estimated 1850 pairs, which is approximately half of the remaining number of breeding pairs of this species in total. However, there are two other smaller colonies, Moletje (just 28km to the NNE) and Sandrevierspoort on the Soutpansberg Range to the north, bringing the total to over 2000 pairs served, not to mention the nonbreeding population and visitors from other areas too. So, in short, Mockford Farms (and its subsidiary feeding sites around Polokwane such as Ibis Piggery), is one of the single most important feeding sites for the species, and not just the Cape Vultures that take advantage of their pork menu either, their sites are also utilised by African Whitebacked Vultures, Lappet-faced Vultures and the occasional young Hooded Vulture. There is also a single resident Palm-nut Vulture to spice things up, as well as hundreds of Marabou Storks visiting. It is not unusual to find over 500 individual vultures at the site. Other animals seen include Jackal and Brown Hyena.
Yana in front of the hide, releasing a White- back after fitting tags and a tracking device After the 2013 breeding season, captures were undertaken in a collaborative study between VulPro, Eskom, EWT and with the support of the Mockfords, to look at movements of vultures in relation to powerlines in the Limpopo Province. In total, 24 vultures were fitted with trackers that summer, half of which were captured at Mockford, and most of the others at Moholoholo. There are now also over 146 resightings records of 76 different individual birds, at least 20 of them having been tagged after rehabilitation at Blouberg and 11 at VulPro, and the rest were tagged at wild captures at various localities or tagged as nestlings. The hide is ideally situated for photography, with light from behind and birds often landing towards the camera (wind direction dependent). Bookings to visit the hide can be made by contacting Yana at: 082 896 8890 or ymockford@yahoo.com Shaun Mockford, Walter Neser, Yana Mockford and Keith Anderson (FLtR) tagging a White- backed Vulture. During 2013 the Mockfords built a hide to facilitate research and photography at the site, and a capture enclosure was added too. Some Tracking Data for Mockford Area Green Pins are Colonies Red Pin is Mockford
Walk the Line... Are there electrocutions near you? by Walter Neser I recently found the remains of 26 electrocuted vultures when I walked a 1.2km stretch of a 11kv T-Structure power line near the Nyoka Ridge Vulture restaurant in the Magaliesberg between the Scheerpoort and Nooitgedatcht Colonies. This feeding site has been active on and off for approx 8 years and at times attracts in excess of 400 individual birds to the site. Most of the remains were of adult birds and we estimated that these remains are likely only from the past year as the carcasses do not remain indefinitely. Extrapolate this number over 8 years and the line may have killed ~214 Vultures. This is a massive loss to a population that has only 300 breeding pairs between the two colonies and the good of the safe food at the restaurant is likely far outweighed by the number of birds that were lost. If you opperate a vulture feeding site, it is your responsibility to ensure that you are doing more good than bad, so regular inspections of powerlines in the vicinity (within a few km) of the site are essential. Any incidents should be reported as soon as possible to VulPro, so that the correct department at Eskom can be mobilised as quick as possible to address the problem. The problem on the line near Nyoka was addressed within a day of its discovery. When you encounter a powerline incident, it is best to take several photographs of the carcass from different angles with at least one showing the position relative to the nearest pole. It is also important to record the nearest pole number and to photograph the type of structure and to note if it has a continuous earth line running from the ground up to the cross arm or insulators (On wooden structures). These earth lines are supposed to be equipped with a spark gap (BIL) of about 50cm, below the lowest insulator on the structure, which prevents earthed electrocutions, but allows lightning to be earthed as it can easily jump this gap. Recording the co-ordinates of the site is also useful. Report this information along with images to kerri.wolter@gmail.com, include farm name, land owner contact details and anything else that you consider relevant. Someone will be dispatched to do a site inspection after which recommendations will be made to Eskom. Powerline electrocutions and collisions are estimated to be the number one threat to vultures in South Africa and is the easiest threat to address. Please help and participate in the solution by regularly checking your lines and reporting incidents immediately. A very useful phone App is about to be released, which aids in recording and submitting this (and other vulture data, including logging of restaurant feeding info and much more. (See release of VulchApp in this Issue).
Six Cape Vultures Killed on one Pole in NW Deadly: a Misconfigured Inverted-T Structure No BIL Gap... Normally a safe structure Always Report all incidents! Its the simplest way to prevent it from happening again!
Interesting Resightings: B427 was tagged as a nestling on the cliffs at Scheerpoort in September 2010 by Kerri and Walter from VulPro along with 14 other chicks on the same day. Of those 14 chicks, 10 have been resighted away from the colony after fledging and one was recovered dead under a powerline below the colony right after fledging. For B427 we have recorded 152 resightings at three of the restaurants in the area and also back on the breeding cliffs during the monitoring of breeding pairs, where it was tending a chick in the nest in 2014 and 2015, which is quite young for breeding. Although this bird has not been recorded making large movements it does not mean it did not do so. There are indications though, that birds that do not range widely away from the natal site have a higher survival rate than their wandering peers. Image by Rob & Ashley at Mogales Gate Want to see your restaurant photo featured here? Send us your favourite photo to: kerri.wolter@gmail.com B427 at VulPro in 2015 B427 after Tagging at Scheerpoort in 2010 Mortality report 2015 Poisoning in the Lowveld seems to be on the increase, and more than one incident apparently targeting vultures specifically have been reported. Alarmingly, we have added a new row to the table below after discovering that poachers are taking AWV chicks from nests along the Limpopo River, most likely for Muthi. The total known mortality numbers are still lower than the past two years, but still unsustainably high. Jan - Dec 2015 Cause / Spesies CV AWV LFV Total Poisoning: 07 120 02 129 Electrocutions: 48 01 01 50 Collisions: 25 02 01 28 Muthi: 32 32 Total: 80 155 04 239
Adventures of (a not so) Reluctant Pilot Part 2 In the previous issue we reported on the adventures of 017, a rehabilitated Cape Vulture fitted with a Satellite Tracking Device. At that time (June 2015) she was up in Angola after her release on the 9th of February 2015 at VulPro. By late June, she had already covered around 5450km. In spite of our worst fears based on past experience with tracked birds visiting Namibia involving poisoning, 017 is still going strong, ten months later. She has now logged another 15431km, making a total distance of 20881km since release, averaging 78,2km per day over the 267 days. The longest distance covered in a day was 269km on the 2nd of August reaching an altitude of only 2240m Asl on that day. She was airborne from before 09:00 till around 15:00, flying SW from central Zambia to Ngonye Falls. Since release, her highest recorded altitude was 3490mAsl or about 2000m AGL during a flight at mid day on the 20th of April, south of the Etosha Pans in Namibia. Her fastest average speed was when she flew 113kms in two hours on 17 June, and her highest altitude reached in the period was 3490m Asl. She Roosted at 226 different sites, so there was a relatively low incidence of using a site more than once. 114 individual sites were identified where feeding and or bathing /took took place. More recently, after discovering a feeding site at a feedlot north of Windhoek, she has became a little more sedentary, remaining within 100km of the site for a month, before heading west into the drier parts on 10 Nov, where she is still active now. Statistics Summary: Total fixes used Days elapsed Total Distance (km) Average dist per day (km) Max dist in a day (km) Max dist in 2 hours (km) Max Alt above Sea Level (m Asl) Max Height above Ground (m Agl) Max Speed over Ground (SOG kph) No of Roosts No of Feeding and Watering points 2122 267 20 881 78,2 269 113 3490 2286 101 226 114 The graph below shows flight altitudes reached from 9 March to 30 Nov 2015.
Death by Misadventure (Reproduced from Popular Press) This is the time of year that the vulture chicks that hatched in 2015 are starting to fledge. As they gain independence they are at great risk due to the modern threats that our vultures face. For VulPro its the busiest season with rescue and rehabilitation as young inexperienced Vultures get themselves into potentially fatal situations as they start to experience the freedom of African skies. Tragically, for too many, what should be an exciting start to their lives ends in disaster, injury and often, death. Young vultures have not yet learnt of the threats that civilisation and modern developments create for them. Power lines and poisonings contribute to the greatest number of fatalities and injuries. Sadly some of these young vultures will lose their freedom before they have ever truly experienced it. Power line collisions often result in various broken bones and permanent disabilities, meaning a life lived at VulPro contributing to the species survival in the Captive Breeding, educational and research Programmes. Other threats that these young vultures face are small high fenced or walled gardens, swimming pools and reservoirs, dogs, unsafe food sources and ignorance or a lack of empathy from people. Vultures are large, heavy birds and require significant space in order to be able to take off and fly. Small gardens often prevent them from being able to take off again, once on the ground. Dogs may worry or kill a grounded vulture if it is trapped inside their garden and electric fencing creates the threat of electrocution, wire cut injuries and even death as the vulture attempts to escape. Heavy rains and swimming pools can end up waterlogging a vulture's plumage, with the added weight and the lack of functionality of their wet feathers, they are unable to fly. A young vulture may not yet have enough body weight and condition to enable them to survive cold and wet for a sustained period. VulPro appeals to the public to remain observant and aware of vultures in trouble. Assistance and advice is a phone call away as Kerri Wolter, founder of VulPro is always available to assist members of the public with advice or guidance on how to handle injured and grounded vultures until VulPro is able to come through and collect the bird for rehabilitation. VulPro does not recommend members of the public attempting to handle grounded or injured vultures without advice from experienced handlers, both the frightened vulture and the good Samaritan are at risk of injury. Whilst vultures are not aggressive and intentionally dangerous, they are powerful and will react if cornered, threatened or in pain; understanding how to handle them in the correct way, is the first step in saving their lives. VulPro's countrywide network of qualified volunteers, staff members and project partners ensure that VulPro is able to assist vultures all around the country, with treatment, collections and information for concerned citizens. Guidelines for dealing with a grounded or injured vulture: Call one of the listed contact numbers to report the vulture, list the condition of the vulture and the apparent nature of the injury or circumstances that vulture is in. Stay with the bird until VulPro arrive on the scene or until you have spoken to someone from VulPro. Do not leave the bird alone as although injured, they can still walk and disappear, never to be seen again. Make a note of threats in the immediate area of the grounded bird. Take GPS co-ordinates for the retrieval team The VulPro contact will advise you on the best way to handle the situation, and how you may best assist the young bird. VulPro Emergency Numbers: Kerry Wolter +27 82 808 5113 (all areas, all countries) Kate Webster + 27 82 702 5942 (Eastern Cape only) VulPro's website is full of information and contact details to assist you at www.vulpro.com, if you would like your children to learn more about these magnificent birds, then encourage them to visit VulPro's Kids Corner at https://vulprokidscorner.wordpress.com/ Vultures are vital to healthy ecosystems and environment for livestock production and agriculture as well as our wildlife and tourism industry. Because if this they are vital to the health and well being of every one of us. Our vultures species are all endangered and every single bird is vital to the stability and survival of the species, even one death, is one death too many. YOU can make a difference, awareness, observation, consideration, empathy and a phone call are all that is required for you to save a valuable life. Help VulPro to save a vital species for Africa Help VulPro to Save our Vultures!
VulchApp! (coming soon!) Reduce your admin and submit your data with VultchApp. Report Poisoning Record Restaurant Feeding Data The App was conceived with Vultures in mind, but is useful for many species in need of protection. All data entered is submitted to a central open source database, and also emailed to you. Your statistics is also displayed within the app, so if, you want to know how many carcasses you have put out in the past year at your restaurant, its all there to review. Your Registration details are used to auto complete as many fields posible in advance. There are also many documents stored in the app with info, data and protocols, help etc. The App was developed specifically for capturing and submitting data that was often not captured due to it not being easy enough to do. VulchApp does it all for you with a couple of taps on your phone, tablet or PC. It runs on Android, iphone and most other platforms and will shortly be available for downloaded from Play Store on Android, App Store on iphone / ipad and similar on other devices. When you register after installation, you will be asked what type of user you are, and the app will adapt itself to your needs accordingly. Updates will be done periodically, and feedback is most welcome and appreciated. Need a feature added? Please give feedback directly from the app, or email the developer at wneser@gmail.com At present, the main features include: Submission of Resightings Reporting of incidents (ie electrocutions) Conduct a Survey (ie powerline or windfarm) VulchApp! Developed by: Walter Neser wneser@gmail.com http://www.africanvultures.org +27 76 593 9849