CONSERVATIONISTS in rural Wales could be set to play a crucial role in saving endangered vultures thousands of miles away in Africa.

The Horstmann Trust in Carmarthenshire has been breeding vultures for more than 40 years, while Falconry Experience Wales at Adfa, near Newtown, Powys welcomed their first two Hooded Vultures two years ago.

Barry Macdonald and Luce Green, owners of Falconry Experience Wales, an award-winning raptor conservation and education attraction, hope to start breeding their two-year-old Hooded Vultures, Togo and Hope, within the next four years.

It’s hoped that their chicks will eventually be part of the wider conservation programme and also released into the wild in Africa, should the situation improve there.

The Welsh conservation work could be crucial to the survival of vulture species. In the last 20 years, vulture populations have crashed by up to 99.9% and nearly 70% of the 23 vulture species are now threatened with extinction.

Of the 16 African and European vulture species, 11 are facing extinction. Globally, of the 23 species, 14 are threatened with extinction, including the largest of all the flighted birds, the condors.

Falconry Experience Wales also owns Vinnie, an African White-Backed Vulture, the population of which has plummeted by 95%, as part of its collection.

The plight of species in South Africa was brought into sharp focus last week when 123 of – 102 White-Backed Vultures, 20 Cape Vultures and one Lappet-Faced Vulture, all listed as endangered or critically endangered – were poisoned in the Kruger National Park.

Poachers increasingly use agricultural toxins to target high-value species – not just vultures, but also lions whose body parts are in growing demand for traditional medicine.

The UK’s only dedicated vulture breed for release conservation charity, The Horstmann Trust is home to some of the world’s largest known captive populations, including Hooded, Egyptian and bearded vultures and Andean condors.

The trust focuses on conservation breeding of vultures and scientific research into their health and incubation. Its work directly supports other vulture conservation organisations around the world.

Vultures are the ultimate agents of balance in the ecosystems and are nature’s waste disposal experts. They clean up animal carcasses quickly and efficiently to limit the spread of bacteria, viruses and other pathogens including rabies, anthrax and cholera.

The direct and indirect actions of people are the largest single contributing factor to the dramatic decline in vulture numbers. Poisoning, poaching, powerlines, use in faith based medicine and loss of habitat are just a few examples.

Poachers often poison vultures because they signal to rangers when an elephant, rhino or lion has been illegally killed.

Barry and Luce are collaborating with the Horstmann Trust, who manage the European Endangered Species Program (EEP) for Hooded vultures, and hope that their pair and future offspring will play an important role within that programme.

“We have been aware of the persecution of vultures for years, but the situation has become much more critical,” explained Barry. “If it deteriorates to a point where these vultures are almost extinct in Africa, then the birds bred in captivity will be the only population to help the breed recover.”

Falconry Experience Wales has raised more than £5,000 to pay for GPS trackers to be attached to four Hooded Vultures in West Africa, so that researchers can monitor their movements for up to five years. They continue to raise funds for up-to-date surveys, ongoing vital research and poison response action kits.

The specially made trackers are attached to a harness on the birds and Barry plans to fly to Africa with a Spanish colleague, hopefully early next year, to fit them on the host Hooded Vultures.

Despite the crisis in Africa, he says there is hope. Asia saw a 99% decline in the vulture population a few years ago, as a result of a drug given to cattle which poisoned the birds when they fed on carcasses.

The loss of vultures is believed to have directly contributed to the deaths of half a million people due to the spread of diseases. However, the Asian vulture population is recovering now that people understand their vital eco-cleansing role.

Replacing vultures in the wild is not a quick fix. Barry explained that vultures don’t begin breeding until aged five to seven years and only raise one chick if successful.

“We have never bred birds before at Falconry Experience Wales, so this will be a new venture for us,” he added. “It’s only because of the threat of extinction that we have become involved.

“Our pair of Hooded vultures were bred in captivity in the UK but their ancestry is Guinea in West Africa.”

In addition to the vultures, Barry and Luce have also recently welcomed a Steller’s Sea Eagle, one of the world’s largest eagles which is classified as vulnerable by The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) red list.

The declining population is believed to be between 3,600 and 4,670 mature individuals, including 1,900 breeding pairs. The Steller’s Sea Eagle breeds in Russia and over-winters in Northern Japan.

Falconry Experience Wales is a member of MWT Cymru, an organisation representing more than 600 tourism and hospitality businesses across Powys, Ceredigion and Southern Eryri (Snowdonia).

Picture at top of page:

Luce Green with Hooded Vulture Togo at Falconry Experience Wales