Stratified analysis of threats pattern of hooded vulture (Necrosytes monachus) and palm-nut vulture (Gypohierax angiogensis) in South-West Nigeria

Abstract

Vulture species are gradually disappearing due to the numerous threats they encountered and the management of these threats has become a major research direction in the conservation and management of vulture species. Monitoring of vulture species is essential as it helps in identifying the threats leading to vulture extinction and also to establish conservation priorities. In managing of Necrosytes monachus and Gypohierax angiogensis that manifest them in the southwest Nigeria, understanding the factors leading to the threats and the effect on the vulture species must be established. Globally, ornithologists are working in determining threats to vulture communities as a way to mitigate the effects and proffer strategies to avert extinction. In southwest Nigeria research show that the most important threats to vulture population are the socioeconomic and demographic variables, the habitat fragmentation, destruction and degradation of habitats through various anthropogenic practices, poaching and illegal sale of vulture species. To analysis and prioritize the threats we are dealing with, it is essential to elaborate sustainable patterns of habitat management. To do this, it is essential that we take an inventory of the main threats that vultures face in southwest Nigeria following the method used by WWF in order to stratify the main threats and to establish actions that can be locally applicable to conserve vulture species logically and efficiently.

Keywords: threat, threat ranking, anthropogenic, extinction, habitat management, ornithologists