11 April 2025 – South Africa’s critically endangered vultures are under severe threat from expanding energy infrastructure, with collisions and electrocutions from powerlines and wind turbines driving sharp population declines. Vulpro, the country’s leading vulture conservation organisation, has recorded 191 vulture deaths or injuries between 2020 and 2025 due to powerline-related incidents. “In the past month alone,...
Court orders Sol Plaatje Municipality to fix sewerage crisis Kimberley, 11 April 2025 — A High Court ruling has offered long-overdue hope for the waterbirds of Kamfers Dam, once home to South Africa’s only breeding colony of Lesser Flamingos. Judge Stanton, delivering judgment in the Northern Cape Division of the High Court, ordered Sol Plaatje Municipality...
BirdLife South Africa has sounded the alarm over the growing threat wind energy infrastructure poses to birdlife, calling for urgent measures to reduce the impact on vulnerable species. A new report, based on bird monitoring at 33 wind farms across three provinces from 2015 to 2024, reveals that 202 bird species have been recorded as...
Update 6 April 2025 • Bird #26 has reached Dar es Salaam, having flown over 3,200 km in just six days—a remarkable feat.• Bird #24 has arrived in the Selous Game Reserve in Tanzania after travelling 2,500 km in six days.• Bird #23 remains just south of the Mozambique–Tanzania border, seemingly enjoying a well-deserved pause...
The Wattled Crane, one of Africa’s most endangered bird species, has been downlisted from Critically Endangered to Endangered in South Africa—an important milestone for conservation. This achievement is the result of decades of dedicated efforts by the Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT) in partnership with the International Crane Foundation, Ezemvelo KwaZulu-Natal Wildlife (EKZNW), farmers, landowners, and other conservation organisations. A...
On February 18th, a wastewater storage embankment at a copper mine in Zambia’s Copperbelt Province collapsed, releasing over 50 million litres of toxic waste into the Mwambashi River. This river feeds into the Kafue, the country’s longest river and a vital water source for millions who depend on it for drinking water, agriculture, and fishing....
Pamela Isdell, a passionate conservationist and devoted benefactor of BirdLife South Africa, passed away in Atlanta on 18 March 2025. Her unwavering commitment to habitat preservation and species survival, particularly in Africa, has left an indelible mark on global conservation efforts. Born in Scotland, Pamela was educated in Zambia from the age of eight, an...
Settlement secures biologically meaningful foraging areas for African Penguins for next decade to help bring the species back from the brink of extinction. 18 March 2025 – BirdLife South Africa and SANCCOB today secured a historic victory for South Africa’s Critically Endangered African Penguin when the Pretoria High Court issued an order of court after...
A groundbreaking study has upended long-held assumptions about the Banda Myzomela (Myzomela boiei. This striking honeyeater is found across three remote island groups in Indonesia. Previously considered to consist of two subspecies, researchers now propose that these vibrant nectar-feeders actually represent three distinct species, based on significant morphological and vocal differences that suggest reproductive isolation....
A new report documenting the economic value of ecosystem services provided by vultures in Southern Africa has been launched by BirdLife International, marking a significant milestone in understanding the role of vultures in the ecosystem. According to the report, which focused on Botswana, Zimbabwe and Zambia, vultures provide ecosystem services including bequest values, sanitation and...
