13/04/2021
Speechless
Growing demand for vulture heads threatens the birds’ survival in Africa
.. the illegal killing and trade of vultures for their body parts is an increasingly worrisome threat, [Darcy Ogada, an ecologist at The Peregrine Fund] says.
In most of West and South Africa, vulture heads are regarded by many as a good luck charm, similar to a rabbit’s foot in Europe or North America. Various vulture body parts are also used for traditional medicinal purposes. There’s evidence that more than a dozen ethnic groups use vulture heads, feet, and blood as treatments for a range of illnesses, as spiritual protection, or to gain the gift of looking into the future.
According to a 2016 study, poisoning for such uses was behind 29 percent of the recorded vulture deaths in 26 West and Central African countries.
Species like the White-backed Vulture or Rüppell's Vulture are the most desired by traditional healers, leading to both birds’ populations being decimated and leaving both species critically endangered. Because of their scarcity now, poachers seem to be sourcing parts from countries where the populations of other species, like Hooded Vultures, have remained somewhat healthy ...
Source: https://www.audubon.org/news/growing-demand-vulture-heads-threatens-birds-survival-africa
