CAPE TOWN, South Africa — Vultures have an image problem. Seen as ugly and associated with death, they are among the least loved animals in the world. But conservationists in Africa are trying to change that.
They've launched an effort to save endangered vultures by trying to put a dollar figure on their incredible value.
A recent report by the BirdLife International conservation organization estimated that vultures are worth $1.8 billion a year to certain ecosystems in southern Africa, which might surprise anyone not familiar with the clean-up, pest control and anti-poaching work performed by one of the most efficient scavengers on the planet.
''They are not up there on the pretty scale. And they are not popular. But we know they are very useful,'' said Fadzai Matsvimbo, an extinction prevention coordinator at BirdLife International.
The report comes at an important time for Africa's vultures; six of the 11 species found on the continent are listed as endangered or critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, which says vultures are highly threatened in many parts of the world. In Africa, some species have declined by nearly 90%, Matsvimbo said.
Conservationists hope the report will make authorities and the public more aware of the positive impact of vultures.
It focused on research in Botswana, Zambia and Zimbabwe and shows how a wake of vultures — the term for a group of feeding vultures — can strip a decomposing carcass in hours, cleaning up ecosystems, reducing the chance of disease spreading and the presence of pests like rats and feral dogs, which has great benefits to communities.
Vultures also have extremely strong stomach acid, don't get food poisoning and are able to consume and neutralize anthrax, botulism and other bacteria and toxins in carcasses that would kill other animals, removing deadly threats from the environment. Just this week, more than 50 hippos died from suspected anthrax poisoning in a reserve in Congo.
