Power lines still killing vultures

OVERHEAD power lines are continuing to exact a heavy toll on bird life, as evidenced by 13 griffon vultures found dead underneath them by ecologists in Lorca (Murcia).

On February 5, 15 volunteers from the associations Naturactúa, ANSE and Ulula checked the power lines between 33 pylons around the Pantano de Puentes reservoir, a place where Iberian lynxes are set to be reintroduced soon and which has recently been colonised by cinereous vultures. They found 14 cadavers in various states of decomposition, all of them apparently electrocuted, one of them a common kestrel and the others griffon vultures, which has a population of about 200 nesting pairs in Murcia region. Given the previous cases of electrocution on these power lines, most of which are within an EU Special Protection Area for birds (SPA), the associations have submitted official complaints and given the details to the public prosecutor in case they might constitute an offence against protected wildlife.

“This data, which is already chilling in itself and gives an idea of the magnitude of the problem, is even more worrying given that most of the pylons (25) had some kind of insulation device to prevent electrocutions, something which has been proven to be ineffective if the insulators are not properly maintained, as these plastic materials end up deteriorating over time,” noted biologist Jorge Sánchez Balibrea.

Only two of the 14 dead birds were underneath pylons that had no kind of anti-electrocution device. Two of the vultures were found to have rings, which will be officially reported, although the odd ring or wing marking may not have been noticed, ‘which is why it is always important for us if possible to pay attention for any identifying marks’.