High rates of inbreeding among hooded vultures in Ghana and South Africa spell trouble for their future, according to a newly published study. The study found that despite wide differences in the population size of the birds in the two countries, both face similar risks associated with low genetic diversity. It underlined the need to protect hooded vultures (Necrosyrtes monachus) in both countries from hunting and habitat loss. Researchers gathered molted feathers from vulture nests in Ghana, where this species is considered highly endangered due to rapid population declines but remains abundant for now, and in South Africa, where it’s estimated that only 100-200 mature adults remain, mostly in Kruger National Park. Despite the variance in their overall population size, the birds in both countries showed high levels of inbreeding and low genetic diversity — a “troubling” finding, according to the authors. The study showed that while the number of hooded vultures in South Africa is dwindling, there’s still a basis for their population to recover. “It still does have some unique genetic components which are important to conserve,” said study co-author Sandi Willows-Munro, an associate professor at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa. Hooded vultures play a critical ecosystem role in both countries, scavenging on carcasses and thus removing disease and potentially harmful bacteria. Low rates of genetic diversity would mean that these populations are vulnerable to threats, such as disease outbreaks, and less adaptable to environmental change. Researchers had initially thought that Ghana’s relatively large population of…This article was originally published on Mongabay
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