Foraging range and habitat use by Cape Vulture Gyps coprotheres from the Msikaba colony, Eastern Cape province, South Africa

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dc.contributor.author Pfeiffer, Morgan B.
dc.contributor.author Venter, Jan A.
dc.contributor.author Downs, Colleen T.
dc.date.accessioned 2015-08-25T05:18:47Z
dc.date.available 2015-08-25T05:18:47Z
dc.date.issued 2015-05-18
dc.description.abstract Despite the extent of subsistence farmland in Africa, little is known about endangered species that persist within them. The Cape Vulture (Gyps coprotheres) is regionally endangered in southern Africa and at least 20% of the population breeds in the subsistence farmland area previously known as the Transkei in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. To understand their movement ecology, adult Cape Vultures (n = 9) were captured and fitted with global positioning system/global system for mobile transmitters. Minimum convex polygons (MCPs), and 99% and 50% kernel density estimates (KDEs) were calculated for the breeding and nonbreeding seasons of the Cape Vulture. Land use maps were constructed for each 99% KDE and vulture locations were overlaid. During the non-breeding season, ranges were slightly larger (mean [± SE] MCP = 16 887 km2 ± 366 km2) than the breeding season (MCP = 14 707 km2 ± 2155 km2). Breeding and non-breeding season MCPs overlapped by a total of 92%. Kernel density estimates showed seasonal variability. During the breeding season, Cape Vultures used subsistence farmland, natural woodland and protected areas more than expected. In the non-breeding season, vultures used natural woodland and subsistence farmland more than expected, and protected areas less than expected. In both seasons, human-altered landscapes were used less, except for subsistence farmland. CONSERVATION IMPLICATIONS : These results highlight the importance of subsistence farmland to the survival of the Cape Vulture. Efforts should be made to minimise potential threats to vultures in the core areas outlined, through outreach programmes and mitigation measures. The conservation buffer of 40 km around Cape Vulture breeding colonies should be increased to 50 km. en_ZA
dc.description.librarian am2015 en_ZA
dc.description.sponsorship The Gay Langmuir bursary, the Rufford Grant, the University of KwaZulu-Natal, and the Eastern Cape Parks and Tourism Agency. en_ZA
dc.description.uri http://www.koedoe.co.za/ en_ZA
dc.identifier.citation Pfeiffer, M.B., Venter, J.A. & Downs, C.T., 2015, ‘Foraging range and habitat use by Cape Vulture Gyps coprotheres from the Msikaba colony, Eastern Cape province, South Africa’, Koedoe 57(1), Art. #1240, 11 pages. http://dx.DOI.org/ 10.4102/koedoe.v57i1.1240. en_ZA
dc.identifier.issn 0075-6458 (print)
dc.identifier.issn 2071-0771 (online)
dc.identifier.other 10.4102/koedoe.v57i1.1240
dc.identifier.uri http://hdl.handle.net/2263/49468
dc.language.iso en en_ZA
dc.publisher AOSIS OpenJournals en_ZA
dc.rights © 2015. The Authors. Licensee: AOSIS OpenJournals. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution License. en_ZA
dc.subject Cape vulture (Gyps coprotheres) en_ZA
dc.subject Endangered en_ZA
dc.subject Farmland en_ZA
dc.subject Southern Africa en_ZA
dc.subject Minimum convex polygons (MCPs) en_ZA
dc.subject Kernel density estimates (KDEs) en_ZA
dc.title Foraging range and habitat use by Cape Vulture Gyps coprotheres from the Msikaba colony, Eastern Cape province, South Africa en_ZA
dc.type Article en_ZA


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