page_title: African vulture trade
section_title: East Africa
hierarchical_section_title: African vulture trade / Bushmeat / East Africa
caption_attribution_description: Gyps rueppellii Čeština: Sup krahujový v keňském národním parku Nairobi English: A Rüppell's Vulture at Nairobi National Park, Kenya. The shadow of the mid-day sun is directly under the vulture. Français&#160;: Un Vautour de Rüppell dans le Parc National de Nairobi au Kenya. L'ombre du Soleil au midi est directement sous le vautour. Deutsch: Sperbergeier (Gyps rueppellii) im Nairobi-Nationalpark in Kenia. Der Schatten der Mittagssonne steht direkt unter ihm.
context_page_description: The African vulture trade involves the poaching, trafficking, and illegal sale of vultures and vulture parts for bushmeat and for belief use, like traditional medicines, in Sub-Saharan Africa. This illegal trade of vultures and vulture parts is contributing to a population crisis on the continent. In 2017, the IUCN Red List categorized seven of Africa's 11 vulture species as globally endangered or critically endangered. Recent research suggests that 90% of vulture species declines in Africa may be due to a combination of poisoning and illegal wildlife trade for medicinal use and/or bushmeat. All trade of African vultures is illegal, as these birds are protected by international laws.
  African vulture trade falls under the broader spectrum of wildlife trade, with both national and international trade occurring. Vultures are sometimes specifically targeted for bushmeat consumption or traditional belief use. Poachers also target vultures, even when they are not harvesting the vultures for bushmeat or belief use purposes. Since vultures circle over carcasses, they can be used as sentinels, alerting wildlife authorities of poaching events.
context_section_description: While other regions of Africa have higher incidence of poisoning for bushmeat consumption, the practice also exists in East Africa.  Specific countries, such as Kenya have experienced high rates of bird deaths from poisoning related to bush meat trade, with over 3,000 deaths reported in a 10-month period. Countries in East Africa, such as Tanzania, have seen increased bushmeat consumption due to a need for protein and income. However, there is no specific data regarding the sale of vultures in Tanzania's markets.
  The limited reporting of vultures used as bushmeat may indicate the minimal numbers of vultures sold for food or represent a lack of published research on this topic in East Africa. This is similar to the lack of documentation available in Southern Africa.
caption: Ruppell's Vulture in Kenya
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