The Eastern Cape is one of the most important breeding and foraging strongholds for the globally Endangered Cape Vulture. This species faces a variety of threats throughout this stronghold including poisoning, persecution, and electrocutions and collisions with energy infrastructure. An emerging threat of concern for Cape Vultures in South Africa is their susceptibility to colliding with turbines on wind energy facilities (WEFs). Indeed, the last five years have demonstrated increasing numbers of mortalities on wind farms, particularly in the Eastern Cape. In light of the rise in Cape Vulture mortalities at WEFs, and the increasing demand for renewable energy in South Africa, wind energy developers and conservationists recognise a growing need for a collaborative approach to Cape Vulture conservation. Subsequently, in partnership with developers, the Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT) established the first Vulture Safe Zone for the Eastern Cape region. The long-term goal of this Eastern Escarpment Vulture Safe Zone (EE VSZ) is to stabilise and recover Cape Vulture populations by creating a network of over 300 properties (WEFs, farmers, game breeders, and private reserves), that are developed and managed in a vulture-safe manner. Working actively with committed WEFs and landowners, the key threats to vultures will be mitigated and where possible, removed from the landscape. Importantly, this approach encourages positive action for wildlife, focusing less on prohibition and negative messaging, and more on sound environmental practices that provide landowners with reputational and economic benefits. Our project coordinator is currently undertaking strategic activities for the conservation of Cape Vultures to reduce fatalities on wind farms and support a viable population of Cape Vultures within the renewable development nodes and the surrounding landscape. Ultimately, our work will help develop sustainable land practices that benefit both the people and wildlife of the EE VSZ.

We have now established a core network comprising over ten landowners and two reserves to support this VSZ work and committed landowners to manage their properties in a vulture-safe manner. In addition, we initiated monitoring work on three Cape Vulture colonies and several important roosting sites in the province, which we will compare with previous surveys conducted six years ago.