Using plants instead of vulture parts for belief-based practices is helping to tackle poaching of the birds in some regions of Nigeria, say conservationists.
Vulture populations have collapsed in Nigeria. The country was once home to seven vulture species; recent surveys recorded only two, the critically endangered hooded vulture (Necrosyrtes monachus) and the palm-nut vulture (Gypohierax angolensis). Habitat loss, poisoning and poaching for belief-based uses, such as the use of vulture parts in traditional medicines or to bring luck or success, are the primary drivers of their rapid decline.
In recent years conservation groups, including the Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF), have engaged with traditional medicine practitioners to reduce demand for vulture parts.
Stella Egbe, species conservation manager at NCF, told Mongabay that many practitioners are switching to plant alternatives, likely because of awareness-raising, increased law enforcement and higher prices of vulture parts in some regions.
Chief Samson Ola Soyoye, vice president of the National Association of Nigerian Traditional Medicine Practitioners, told Mongabay the use of vulture parts has a long history in medicinal practices in Nigeria. “That’s when the vultures were many but now [they are] rapidly going into extinction,” he said. “My view is to look for alternative plants instead of vultures.”
More than 20 plants are now used in place of vulture parts in some places, Egbe said, adding that the conservation status of the plant alternatives also needs to be assessed.
To date, the African mahogany tree (Khaya ivorensis), also known as oganwo, is the only species used as an alternative by practitioners that is assessed by the IUCN Red List. It’s listed as vulnerable owing to large declines in numbers. Another species, the violet tree (Securidaca longipedunculata), known locally as ipeta, is also thought to be declining owing to overharvesting. Egbe said NCF plans to cultivate medicinal plant species that are at risk of being overharvested in protected areas.
Soyoye said his organization has had success engaging with registered practitioners in southwest Nigeria to encourage the uptake of plant alternatives, but awareness needs raising to reach more. Enforcement at a national level to tackle vulture killings and the sale of their parts in markets is also required, he said.
Regional differences in the uptake of plant alternatives follows patterns of traditional beliefs, said Michael Manja Williams, a PhD Candidate at the Joseph Sarwuan Tarka University. In south and east Nigeria, cultural norms generally prohibit the killing of vultures, aligning with conservation messages, so practitioners are often more willing to stop using their parts, he told Mongabay. In the north and west, beliefs link the presence or sight of vultures to bad luck or ill omens and demand for vulture parts appears to be growing there.
Overall, Egbe said she is “cautiously optimistic” about the progress made, but added “We’re still far away from celebrating the successful recovery of vulture populations.”.
Banner image: A hooded vulture. Image by Mibby23 via Flickr (CC BY-NC 2.0).
This story first appeared on Mongabay
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