The Endangered Wildlife Trust (or EWT for short) is a conservation organisation that has been fighting to preserve habitats and their species for over 50 years. Currently, they operate in 21 countries around Southern & Eastern Africa with over 100 dedicated and passionate team members. The EWT runs 13 programmes, each with their own unique focus, ranging from conserving Africa’s carnivores to amphibians & African cranes.
The EWT’s work is nothing short of amazing and inspiring, that’s why we are proud to have been a sponsor of theirs for years, having provided them Canopies, Rooftop Tents, shadow Awnings and more. Specifically, we are a sponsor of their Birds of Prey Programme, led by Dr. Gareth Tate. This programme has the primary aim to improve population trends of threatened birds of prey in Southern Africa and ultimately improve the conservation status of priority species.
The 6th of May 2025 marks an unfortunate day for African vultures due to a major poisoning event by poachers in the Kruger National Park. This ultimately saw 123 deaths, however, the quick response from the EWT & SANParks prevented that number from being much higher.
After EWT’s wildlife poisoning surveillance & detection system sent out a system trigger alert in the Mahlangeni section of the park at 6:05 am, EWT and SANParks sprung into action. Upon arriving at the scene, they discovered the grim reality of the situation. An elephant carcass had been poisoned with the highly toxic insecticide, aldicarb, which the vultures consumed. The six SANParks rangers and two EWT officials began to render aid to the affected birds, using atropine, activated charcoal and fluid therapy.
Through a collaborative effort, 84 vultures were rescued from the scene alive. 45 were transported via EWT’s Vulture Ambulance, a mobile unit specifically designed for transporting injured birds to treatment facilities, while the other 39 were airlifted by helicopter to the SANParks K9 facility in Phalaborwa.
With the assistance provided by support teams from Moholoholo Wildlife rehabilitation Centre, Briner Veterinary Services & Wildscapes Veterinary Services, teams worked tirelessly throughout the night to stabilize each vulture.
Unfortunately, this is not the first time something like this has taken place. Poachers are known to poison vultures for the growing demand of traditional medicine or muti as well as cut down the number of vultures in their hunting grounds. This is because their presence in the sky, as they circle near animal carcasses, can alert the authorities to the presence of poachers.
Despite the greater issue at hand, we thank the Endangered Wildlife Trust and SANParks for all their hard-work and dedication to fighting against the harmful trade that is poaching. During this rescue mission, we saw our Shadow Awning and Canopy Camper come into play in helping save the lives of these vultures. Dr. Gareth Tate reached out after the incident and stated that, “The Alu-Cab gear helped immensely to set up a station and treat and transport dozens of survivors”. We are so grateful that we have been able to contribute to their positive impact and we wish them the best of luck for what lies ahead. Without the brave men and women who make up conservation organisations, Southern Africa would be a very different place for the worst.
If you’d like to contribute to the honorable efforts of EWT & SANParks, see the donation links below: