Conservationists are convinced the decrease in Migratory birds is largely due to a shortage of insects.
Habitat loss, the use of pesticides, are main causes of insectivore mortalities, according to Andre Botha, the Manager of Vultures for Africa Programme, at the Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT).
Counts of migratory birds conducted across South Africa by EWT field officers, particularly in the Northern Cape, North West, Mpumalanga and KwaZulu-Natal in January and February 2024, paint a bleak picture.
Although figures are inconclusive, counts went from thousands of Falcons and Kestrels in the Hanover area on 20 January 2024, to just a few hundred at a roost in Standerton, Klerksdorp, in Underberg, Victoria West and Beaufort West Areas.
Between 160 and 180 raptors were counted at De Aar in February this year.
“Preliminary figures from EWT’s own monitoring Programme, indicate there have been fewer Kestrels and Amur Falcons visiting South Africa this year” said Botha.
A more conclusive report is expected to be released next year.
While insect declines may be a serious contributing factor, it is also possible that birds preferred north of East Africa this year because of recent abundant rainfall in that Region.
The decrease in Migratory birds is a global concern.
It is documented in a UN report on the Status of the World’s Migratory Species and the review of the Mid-Term Implementation Action Plan to Conserve African-Eurasian Vultures (Vulture MsAP).
Over 30 years, 70 CMS-listed migratory species, including the Egyptian Vulture, have become more endangered.
The report has listed some causes as habitat loss, degradation and fragmentation, as well as over-exploitation alongside climate change, pollution and invasive species as having profound impacts on migratory species.
The report also recognised that the widespread use of pesticides in intensive agriculture is a key factor in the reported declines in insect populations. Many of these substances also have a secondary poisoning effect on birds that may feed on insects killed by the pesticides.
Over the weekend, Barbara Creecy, Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, said efforts will soon get underway to draft a National Plan for the Implementation of Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA), which would also address diminishing insect populations.
European rollers eat any insect they can catch, from crickets to dung beetles, when in South Africa.
Picture: Depositphotos