Vulture Conservation Foundation news bulletin
April 2020

Together for Bearded Vultures

Together with our partners, we managed to overcome the challenges that the global coronavirus pandemic bestowed on our Bearded Vulture Captive Breeding Network (EEP).

While taking all the necessary precautions during these challenging times, we continued to work diligently to take care of captive Bearded Vultures and save the newly hatched chicks. The chicks that hatch within our Bearded Vulture EEP need to be reared by Bearded Vultures to avoid human imprinting. Otherwise, they will recognise humans as their species and will not be able to reproduce or be released to the wild. However, not all facilities that breed the species have the capacity to naturally rear chicks. So, under normal circumstances, we transfer chicks to centres where breeding pairs can adopt and raise them but this is not possible right now due to travel restrictions. To tackle these difficulties, the VCF developed emergency protocols where partners of the Bearded Vulture EEP can take specific measures to raise chicks without human imprinting. Watch the measures we and our partners are taking to avoid human imprinting on the video below.

Now, the release season is just around the corner, and together with it, more challenges are on the horizon, but we are preparing and adapting to the situation every step of the way.

The success of our Bearded Vulture reintroduction projects would not have been possible without our partners —local organisations and authorities in reintroduction areas and our Bearded Vulture EEP partners that breed the species. A big thank you to all of them for their continued commitment to conserving Europe's rarest vulture.

Together for Bearded Vultures — taking measures to tackle COVID-19 issues

Biggest ever vulture mortality event in the world unfolds in Guinea-Bissau

Guinea-Bissau became a vulture graveyard over the past couple of months, with estimates of over 2000 Hooded Vultures poisoned to death due to primarily belief-based use, causing a devastating blow to the conservation of a species that is already on the brink of extinction in Africa.

Evidence suggests that the vultures have been killed deliberately using poisoned baits to collect their body parts for belief-based use as at least 200 dead vultures have been found without their heads. In some parts of Africa, some communities believe that possession of vulture heads brings good fortune or even special powers and reports corroborate that the demand for vulture heads increased due to the country's political instability. Additionally, Universidade de Lisboa examined the three Hooded Vulture carcasses we managed to transfer from Guinea-Bissau to Portugal, and preliminary toxicology results further verify that the vultures were deliberately poisoned. The results indicated that a type of carbamate was used, and more analysis is continuing to determine the exact substance used.

With the political crisis in the country and the COVID-19 crisis, it has been even more difficult to respond accordingly to the circumstances and coordinate effective efforts. But local and national authorities, together with us at the Vulture Conservation Foundation (VCF), the IUCN's Vulture Specialist Group (VSG) and BirdLife International (BLI) are working on the case and will continue to monitor and investigate the situation closely.

Biggest ever vulture mortality event in the world unfolds in Guinea-Bissau: estimates of over 2000 Hooded Vultures poisoned to death due to belief-based use

Latest news about Europe's four vulture species

Egyptian Vulture

Rare sighting of a juvenile Egyptian Vulture in South Africa — the species is thought to be extinct in the country

The latest Egyptian Vulture national census in Spain demonstrates that the species population is stable

Are vultures really becoming livestock predators? Shedding some light on negative misconceptions and false accusations – new paper

One less Egyptian Vulture pair in the Canary Islands — poisoning killed the pair and left a breeding female in critical condition

Latest newsletter of the IUCN Vulture Specialist Group

Earth Day 2020: Why it is more important than ever to preserve our nature and vultures

Research review: new article demonstrates the value of research for effective vulture conservation

Griffon Vulture

How are the released Griffon Vultures doing in Sardinia?

Animal carcasses — from a problem to a conservation opportunity

Latest newsletter of the IUCN Vulture Specialist Group

Research review: new article demonstrates the value of research for effective vulture conservation

Are vultures really becoming livestock predators? Shedding some light on negative misconceptions and false accusations – new paper

Bearded Vulture

Bearded Vultures try to breed for the first time on the Moncayo Mountains (Easternmost Central Iberian Massif)

Latest newsletter of the IUCN Vulture Specialist Group

Together for Bearded Vultures — taking measures to tackle COVID-19 issues

Research review: recent study describes the movements of Bearded Vultures in the Himalayas

Research review: new article demonstrates the value of research for effective vulture conservation

Are vultures really becoming livestock predators? Shedding some light on negative misconceptions and false accusations – new paper

Cinereous Vulture

Touring around Mallorca the Cinereous Vulture way

Where did Cinereous Vulture Caparica travel to after its rehabilitation and release?

Tagging vultures: Why swift field response is essential to save birds and inform conservation actions

Research review: new article demonstrates the value of research for effective vulture conservation

Latest newsletter of the IUCN Vulture Specialist Group

Are vultures really becoming livestock predators? Shedding some light on negative misconceptions and false accusations – new paper

Latest news from our vulture conservation projects

Vultures Back to LIFE led by Green Balkans and the Fund for Wild Flora and Fauna, aims to reintroduce the Cinereous Vulture back to Bulgaria since it was declared extinct in the 1980s.

Latest news
Watch: Griffon Vulture chick hatching in Green Balkans' Centre for the second time in history!

The wandering Cinereous Vulture Riga returned home!

Updates from the reintroduced Cinereous Vultures in Bulgaria

The LIFE Re-Vultures project, led by Rewilding Europe, aims to support the recovery of Cinereous and Griffon Vulture populations in the cross border Rhodope Mountain region.

Latest news
Lords of the Rhodopean Skies — a new online wildlife photography exhibition available for a limited time

The LIFE with Vultures project, led by BirdLife Cyprus, aims to save the threatened Griffon Vulture population in Cyprus by tackling key threats and restocking their population.

Latest news
The website of our latest LIFE project in Cyprus, LIFE with Vultures, is now available for the public!

The Balkan Anti-Poisoning Project is bringing together stakeholders in five Balkan countries to tackle illegal wildlife poisoning.

Latest news
The actions against illegal wildlife poisoning in Croatia

Why, when, where? Rigorous investigation answers important questions about illegal wildlife poisoning in Serbia

LIFE with Vultures new website

The website of our latest LIFE project is now live!

LIFE with Vultures is a targeted conservation project for the protection of the Griffon Vulture in Cyprus, which is on the brink of extinction. In this four-year endeavour (2019-2023), BirdLife Cyprus, the Game and Fauna Service, Terra Cypria – The Cyprus Conservation Foundation and us at the Vulture Conservation Foundation (VCF) have joined forces to tackle the main threats facing the Griffon Vulture and restock the population of the species to prevent Cyprus’ most threatened bird of prey from going extinct.

The website details the importance of the species for the ecosystem, the threats it faces and how the project will tackle these through concrete conservation actions. You can also follow the movements of Ikaros and Nefeli, the first two vultures that were tagged within the project with GPS tags provided by the VCF.

Visit the website and learn more: www.lifewithvultures.eu

Research Review

Research plays a crucial role in the attempt to protect vultures as it can help inform future conservation strategies and actions. Here at the VCF, our staff and board members significantly contribute to vulture studies, and we continually review research carried out by our colleagues to stay up to date with the latest vulture insights. Here are this month's research reviews:

Research review: recent study describes the movements of Bearded Vultures in the Himalayas

Research review: new article demonstrates the value of research for effective vulture conservation

Research review: The first Pan-Africa study on Hooded Vultures evaluates their movements

Follow vultures online

Monitoring vultures with GPS tags allows us to understand their behaviour and track their movements, which helps inform targeted conservation actions.

For instance, we are now closely following the movements of the Vultures Back To LIFE reintroduced Cinereous Vultures in Bulgaria, which helped the project team carry out rescue missions and save birds that got into trouble like Barnabie.

GPS data also enables us to track the spring migration journeys of Egyptian Vultures who face many threats along their Mediterranean pathways. For example, the Egyptian Vulture Sara spent many days in Tunisia and Algeria before crossing the sea and returning to Italy, so to ensure her safety, CERM notified local ornithologist who monitored her in the field.

You can track the movements of all of Europe's vultures species we tagged within our different projects and regions by visiting our online public maps.

Bearded Vulture online maps
Cinereous Vulture online maps
Egyptian Vulture online maps
Griffon Vulture online maps