South African Falconry Association Supports Crowned Eagle Research

Invited article by

Dr. Adrian Lombard

Chairman, South African Falconry Association

The Crowned Eagle is certainly one of South Africa’s iconic raptors and is a source of awe and fascination to all raptor enthusiasts. There is limited interest in this bird from a Falconry perspective although all Falconers will share the appreciation for this species with other “raptophiles”. The South African Falconry Association recognizes the challenges related to flying this formidable eagle and limits its use to very experienced Falconers (or Austringers as practitioners of this branch of our Art are known). This said, there is a history of the use of this species for Falconry in Southern Africa. The renowned wildlife artist and Falconer, David Reid-Henry, flew a Crowned Eagle – Tiara - for many years and I include a painting by David of this bird. Other African Falconers have flown this species with significant success. Andre Groenewald of the Zimbabwe Falconry Association has flown and hunted with a most effective Crowned Eagle for many years. Similarly, Simon Thomset, in Kenya, has bred from a pair of these eagles and flown their offspring for a number of years. There have been several other Falconers who have had success with this species.

Artwork by David Ried-Henry

The South African Falconry Association supports the sustainable utilization of wild raptors and we believe that this encourages the conservation of raptors. Our belief is supported by the Convention on Biological Diversity which sees Sustainable Utilization as one of three main pillars of the conservation effort.

The importance of Sustainable Utilization is explained and its application elucidated in the Addis Ababa Principles, published in 2004, which state:

Sustainable use is a valuable tool to promote conservation of biological diversity, since in many instances it provides incentives for conservation and restoration because of the social, cultural and economic benefits that people derive from that use. In turn, sustainable use cannot be achieved without effective conservation measures.

Effective conservation measures require scientific data to ensure appropriate actions are taken.  Research, such as that being undertaken by Shane, is thus an essential component of the conservation effort.

It is the contention of the South African Falconry community that the Crowned Eagle is one of the raptors which has adapted to the altered environment which has resulted from human activity.  It has infiltrated the suburban environment and has benefited from alien forestation.  Indeed, its numbers would appear to be increasing as a result of adaptation to the altered environment rather than declining through human persecution.  Based on this perception, Falconers have challenged its inclusion in the list of Threatened or Protected Species (ToPS) and submitted the following to the Review of the Listing of ToPS species:

Submission by the South African Falconry Association regarding inclusion of the African Crowned Eagle – Stephanoaetus coronatus – in the revised species list with respect to Threatened or Protected Species

Introduction:
We note with concern the inclusion of the African Crowned Eagle (Stephanoaetus coronatus) in the Draft ToPS list for Birds. It is our submission that this species does not satisfy the criteria for inclusion on this list as detailed in the Discussion Document
This species is included under the Protected Category. The criteria for inclusion are
1.   That it must be listed as Near Threatened according to the IUCN 2001 Red List, which is not the case, and it must also be threatened by direct use. This is not the case.
2.   That it is in need of regulation/management as current utilization may result in a significant decline in wild populations of the species. This is not the case.
The inclusion of this species is inappropriate and this will be discussed further below.

Discussion:
The African Crowned Eagle is listed as not globally threatened and has an extensive distribution through Africa where it may be locally common . In South Africa it is considered Near Threatened due to persecution by small stock farmers and loss of forest habitat, although this is off-set by the establishment of alien plantations . In fact, this species may have benefited by habitat change and there are relatively strong populations in the Eastern Cape, KwaZulu Natal and Mpumalanga. It has encroached on the suburbs of some towns including Grahamstown, Durban and Pietermaritzburg and can be a hazard to cats and small dogs. Falconers have been involved in programs to monitor this species in Natal and Mpumalanga.
   The African Crowned Eagle is not threatened by direct use. Falconers make very infrequent use of this species with no birds being harvested in the last 5 years. The occasional birds utilized for Falconry have been individuals trapped due to predation on cats and dogs. A limited harvest would certainly be sustainable, particularly as this species usually lays 2 eggs and siblicide appears obligate , so the harvesting of the second chick would have minimal impact. That said there is no current desire by Falconers to increase utilization of this species and the South African Falconry Association applies stringent controls to the use of eagles, and this species in particular, due to potential injury risk in inexperienced hands.This species is not targeted by the exotic pet trade or for muthi. It seldom if ever eats carrion so is not part of the by-kill in the poisoning of vultures for use in traditional medicines. This is not the case with other more vulnerable species such as the Tawny and Bateleur Eagles which are rightfully included in the ToPS listing.   This species nests in big trees and has benefited from the establishment of exotic plantations which it utilizes. The problem of nesting-tree loss due to increasing elephant populations which threatens other large tree nesting raptors, many of which are included in the ToPS listing, has much less impact on the African Crowned Eagle due to its habitat choice.   Persecution of this species by stock farmers and pet owners is a problem. This may be particularly significant for the population in the Southern Cape and for those nesting close to suburban areas. Mitigation of this would include education of farmers who may come to appreciate this Eagle for its predation on monkeys as well as the removal of problem individuals. The use of such individuals in Falconry provides an alternative to killing them as translocation is not an option for large Eagles. The ToPS regulations do not benefit the protection of this species and would, in fact, create bureaucratic obstruction to such mitigation.

Recommendation:
It is the expert opinion of the South African Falconry Association that the African Crowned Eagle should be excluded from the list of species covered by the ToPS regulations. This species fails to meet the inclusion criteria. The African Crowned Eagle population is probably underestimated due to this bird’s unobtrusive behavior as well as the forest environment that it inhabits, rendering it less obvious than other large eagle species.   Other species are currently far more severely challenged. It is essential to identify these species and provide them with the necessary support and protection to ensure their survival. The threat of extinction is very real to a number of South Africa’s bird species. This threat must not be trivialized by providing blanket protection or by diverting resources to species whose current status does not warrant special protection.

Adrian LombardSouth African Falconry Association15th May 15, 2011.

The South African Falconry Association intends to provide both financial and practical assistance to Shane's project and will watch the outcomes with interest. This iconic and exciting bird deserves conservation support and protection. Never-the-less, the Crowned Eagle population may well sustain a limited harvest which can, in turn, benefit the conservation of the species.