Written by Kormorant | 2 September 2010

Vultures are under extreme threat and these magnificent birds’ well-being and the role humans play in protecting them will once again be highlighted on Saturday during International Vulture Awareness Day.

“So what do you want to do? I don’t know; what do you want to do?” “We all remember the hila-rious vultures from the Jungle Book who are constantly asking each other what they should do. Well, now these birds are turning to us and asking us “what are we going to do?” the team of The Ann van Dyk Cheetah Centre recently said in a statement.

The statement points out that vultures are suffering from power line injuries, poisonings and muti killings and that these magnificent creatures are des-perately crying out for help. Saturday is everyone’s chance to raise awareness of the plight of these vital birds.

The Ann Van Dyk Cheetah Centre has been working with vultures for many years, both with the rehabilitation and breeding of vultures. In honour of Inter-national Vulture Awareness Day they are running a vulture colouring in competition with the local schools to try to educate the future generation about the importance of vultures in the eco- system.

There is an opportunity in this area to view the birds, both in the wild in colonies such as at the vulture restaurant at Leopard Lodge and at the Ann Van Dyk Cheetah Centre. The Centre has a number of vultures of different species, including the Egyptian Vulture which has been classified as breeding extinct in South Africa. “We all need to stand together to enable these birds to remain free in our skies. So that in the future when we watch movies like the Jungle Book we see a living emblem of freedom and not a past regret,” the team stated.

Call (012) 504 9906/7/8 for more information on what can be done to protect them.