Blog post by Steffen Oppel, Senior Conservation Scientist, RSPB Centre for Conservation Science
In October 2018, an Egyptian Vulture that had migrated from Bulgaria to winter in Ethiopia, died under unknown circumstances in Afar province, eastern Ethiopia. Afar is a fairly barren stretch of semi-desert in the lowlands of north-eastern Ethiopia, which is known to host hundreds - if not thousands - of Egyptian Vultures during winter. Any threats to the species in that region could therefore affect a large number of birds. The Egyptian Vulture LIFE team therefore staged an expedition to Afar in January 2019 – to find out how many birds winter there and what threats exist to Egyptian Vultures.
Five adult and one juvenile Egyptian Vulture in the sandy semi-desert of Afar, Ethiopia
A team of experts from Bulgaria, Czech Republic, France, Kenya, Nigeria, Niger, and the UK joined with local partners from Ethiopia to count and catch Egyptian Vultures. After a day of driving from the capital of Addis Ababa to the lowlands, the team found the first Egyptian Vulture congregation near the town of Metehara. A large rubbish dump, and two abattoirs that discarded remains of slaughtered cows and goats attracted hundreds of vultures of several species to the area.
Egyptian Vultures sifting through rubbish to find food in Metahara, Ethiopia.
Unfortunately, the small power lines that connect rural villages in Ethiopia are all designed very poorly: the live wires are propped above the crossbars that support the wires. This means that a bird landing on the pylon can touch either two live wires, or a live wire and the pylon at the same time. In either case the electricity then runs through the bird’s body, leading to imminent death through electrocution. This problem is pervasive in Africa.
Hooded Vultures perch on every pylon outside the abattoir of Metehara, Ethiopia.
Combine a place like an abattoir that provides an endless amount of food for vultures with a dangerous powerline and you have a recipe for disaster: next to the abattoirs and rubbish dumps in Metehara and Logia poorly designed powerlines offered seemingly attractive perches for vultures waiting for another dead animal to be discarded. Our team found several dead vultures, including 4 Egyptian Vultures, under these lines. After speaking to local authorities we ensured that these lines will be retrofitted to avoid killing more birds in the future.
An electrocution victim under a typical dangerous powerline in Afar, Ethiopia.
Because there are thousands of kilometres of dangerous powerlines, we could not survey all danger areas on foot. We therefore caught 7 Egyptian Vultures and equipped them with tracking devices to find out where the birds go and where they may die. You can follow the journeys of those 7 birds and others on the project website.
The project team captured and tagged 7 Egyptian Vultures.
Overall, the team counted 1707 Egyptian Vultures in Afar and adjacent areas of Oromia province. Most (54%) of the birds were adults, and likely only spend the winter in this region, while many of the younger birds can stay for several years in Africa before returning to their breeding grounds in Europe or the Middle East.
Dozens of Egyptian Vultures roosting on (safe) power pylons between Semera and Logia, Ethiopia.