LIMPOPO – The South African National Parks (SANParks) says the mass vulture poisoning incident in the Kruger National Park on May 6 is one of the most devastating environmental crimes seen in Southern Africa.

A total of 123 endangered vulture carcasses were discovered near a poisoned elephant carcass that was killed using a cable snare laced with a highly toxic agrochemical pesticide.

SANParks spokesperson JP Louw said the tragedy unfolded in the remote Mahlangeni section of the Kruger National Park when the Endangered Wildlife Trust’s (EWT) pioneering wildlife poisoning detection system flagged suspicious activity at 06:05.

A joint SANParks-EWT team responded, arriving on scene by 08:20 and found the harrowing scene.

Wildlife toll

The team found 123 vultures (102 White-backed Vultures, 20 Cape Vultures, and one Lappet-faced Vulture) who were confirmed dead.

Louw said all are endangered or critically endangered species.

“The poison was deliberately placed by poachers, who often harvest vulture body parts for the illegal muthi trade. Notably, the elephant’s tusks were still intact, indicating the poachers may have been interrupted,” his statement read.

Louw further described the rescue effort as one of the largest and most coordinated wildlife rescues ever undertaken in the park as 84 vultures were saved by combined SANParks, EWT, veterinary and NGO teams.

“Two severely poisoned vultures were stabilised on-site by rangers and EWT staff using emergency first aid. A total of 45 vultures were transported in a specialised EWT vulture ambulance, while another 39 were airlifted by SANParks helicopters to the K9 facility in Phalaborwa,” his statement read.

All the birds were then transferred to the Moholoholo Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre.

“Despite the severity of poisoning, an astonishing 96% of the rescued vultures survived. As of 8 May, 83 are still recovering,” Louw said.

Environmental and police response

The Limpopo police have launched an intensive manhunt for the suspects involved, with provincial police commissioner Lieutenant General Thembi Hadebe strongly condemning the incident.

“We are appalled by this senseless killing of our protected wildlife. Not only was an elephant illegally hunted, but the deliberate poisoning has resulted in significant damage to our vulture population, which plays a crucial role in our ecosystem.”

Hadebe said they have assembled a dedicated team to track down the perpetrators and bring them to justice.

“This type of environmental crime threatens our natural heritage and will not be tolerated,” she said.

Anyone with information is urged to contact Warrant Officer Eric Nkuna on 082 657 7297, the Crime Stop number on 08600 10111, visit the nearest police station, or use the MySAPS App.