<p>The endangered lappet-faced vulture, which was selected as&nbsp;BirdLife&nbsp;South Africa&rsquo;s 2017 Bird of the Year, faces many threats, with poisoning being at the forefront. Conservationists are urging farmers to join in the fight to save it from extinction, while various initiatives seek to educate the public about the bird&rsquo;s important role in nature. By&nbsp;SANParks&nbsp;Times reporter<strong>,&nbsp;Ren&eacute;&nbsp;de&nbsp;Klerk.</strong></p>

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The lappet-faced vulture is easy to recognise by its pink face and fleshy folds, and is a sought-after species in the bird-watching world. The possibility of sighting the bird – which features on the Big Six bird list – often draws twitchers to the national parks, reserves, and natural areas where they are still present.

In many parts of Africa, however, numbers have dwindled drastically, and if this continues, there may be a void on this list in the near future.

Historically, the lappet-faced vulture occurred in habitats from Cape Town to the south of the Mediterranean. Now they are extinct in a number of territories, including Western Sahara, Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco. Numbers are extremely low in Egypt and major decreases have been recorded in Nigeria. Just recently, the bird became extinct in Israel and Jordan.

In 2016, the lappet-faced vulture was uplisted to ‘endangered’ on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Red Data list, along with many other African vulture species. In 2017, it was selected as BirdLife South Africa’s Bird of the Year. The choice highlights the plight of vultures in general, especially because vulture numbers across the board are declining at such a rapid rate.

POISONING BY POACHERS AND FARMERS 

Vultures face various threats, but poisoning is the most prominent. More than 2 500 vultures have been lost to deliberate poisoning in the past four to five years in Southern Africa, accordin