The lappets aren’t here and we can’t get in!

Explore African wildlife and check out the vultures. South Africa has a number of vulture species and tragically many are endangered or close to being so. The Cape Vulture is one such and saw a massive decline not long ago. The numbers are coming back up slowly and yet there is a long way to go before we can breathe easy on their account.

Vultures have the best network in the animal kingdom. There was a notable case where a vulture tagged in the morning at Pilanesberg National Park was found late afternoon on a carcass in the Kruger park. A distance of 500km and more. How did he show up? Let me tell you these guys are Exploring Africa by air. They use rising air currents called thermals and soar to great heights without flapping a wing. 

Each vulture keeps track of the ground underneath for feeding opportunities and also keeps track of his buddies up to 10-15 km around him. So each individual has a radius of about 10-15 km around him or her. So when one drops down to a carcass soon the neighbours realize that he has moved and as one moves downwards the neighbours start and …. You guessed it, their neighbours and so on and on and on till out of a clear sky you have up to 100 vultures in a matter of a few hours sitting around on or near a carcass waiting for the lions to finish so they can dig in. With cheetah kills they bully the cheetah off and many cheetah kills are lost to vultures and of course the ubiquitous hyena.

There is a catch though. Most vultures can’t really get into a carcass if there was no major predator feeding on it first. So a giraffe for example (in the pic) that died of natural causes would have to be opened up before any can feed. The big shot who can actually do that is the Lappet faced vulture with its huge strong beak and powerful body. Once it has been opened then it’s a free for all.

The carcass as you can see in the picture has hardly been opened at all. Giraffe skin is pretty tough and even 24 hours after the giraffe died it has still not been exploited. Maybe the lappet’s are off on a jamboree cuz they ain’t showed up yet, and the Cape vultures and their hooded vulture pals are just hanging around waiting for a meal to be served.

This video of the buffalo that was killed by lions shows how completely they can clean a carcass to the bone. Cape and hooded vultures are very efficient scavengers when the carcass is opened up.

As we explore the cause of things, Africa becomes more and more exciting and amazing and thrilling. Explore Africa and discover something every day.