Masters of the Sky

At the turn of the century, a farmer in Oribi in southern KwaZulu-Natal started seeing Cape Vultures soaring above his lands. Perhaps they were from the thriving colony at Msikaba on the Wild Coast? Maybe some were survivors of the Umtamvuna Nature Reserve colony that had collapsed some years earlier? Regardless of their origin, to see wild vultures in his home skies again was a thrilling sight for nature-loving Mike Neethling.

Aware of the desperate plight of vultures – according to BirdLife South Africa, they’re among the most threatened groups of birds on Earth with 70 per cent of the world’s 23 species being globally Threatened or Near Threatened – Mike established a feeding station. This entailed leaving uncontaminated livestock carcasses (not containing poisons or veterinary drugs such as anti-inflammatories that can kill vultures) on an expansive grassy plateau on his farm above the Umzimkulu