Preventative Healthcare with Wings
Location
Bent Corridor, Science Center
Document Type
Poster - Open Access
Start Date
5-1-2026 12:00 PM
End Date
5-1-2026 2:00 PM
Research Program
Moholoholo Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre
Abstract
Vultures are the most important scavenger species on Earth. They fill a critical niche for ecological and public health by rapidly locating and consuming carrion that may otherwise contaminate soil and water sources, allow for an increase in populations of mammalian scavengers, and lead to disease outbreaks. Vulture populations worldwide are declining. Of the six vulture species in South Africa, all species are classified as either vulnerable, endangered, or critically endangered. Ongoing threats such as black market activity, poisoning, and other forms of poaching continue to drive this population loss. This is frightening considering that in South Asia, where vulture populations have fallen by over 99.5% in a decade, the empty scavenging niche has been filled by rats and dogs leading to a rabies outbreak and subsequent public health and economic crises. Despite conservation and anti-poaching efforts in South Africa, populations are continuing to decline, and poisonings are at an all time high, signaling an urgent need for investment in order to strengthen anti-poaching and conservation efforts.
Keywords:
Public health, Ecology, Disease, Outbreaks
Recommended Citation
Bruzek, Ella, "Preventative Healthcare with Wings" (2026). Research Symposium. 7.
https://digitalcommons.oberlin.edu/researchsymp/2026/posters/7
Major
Biology
Project Mentor(s)
Gunnar Kwakye, Neuroscience
2026
Preventative Healthcare with Wings
Bent Corridor, Science Center
Vultures are the most important scavenger species on Earth. They fill a critical niche for ecological and public health by rapidly locating and consuming carrion that may otherwise contaminate soil and water sources, allow for an increase in populations of mammalian scavengers, and lead to disease outbreaks. Vulture populations worldwide are declining. Of the six vulture species in South Africa, all species are classified as either vulnerable, endangered, or critically endangered. Ongoing threats such as black market activity, poisoning, and other forms of poaching continue to drive this population loss. This is frightening considering that in South Asia, where vulture populations have fallen by over 99.5% in a decade, the empty scavenging niche has been filled by rats and dogs leading to a rabies outbreak and subsequent public health and economic crises. Despite conservation and anti-poaching efforts in South Africa, populations are continuing to decline, and poisonings are at an all time high, signaling an urgent need for investment in order to strengthen anti-poaching and conservation efforts.
