尼日利亚东南部城镇阿夫卡-埃蒂蒂正在见证一场野生动物保护的逆转。在当地居民"秃鹫王"伊格韦的带领下，该社区通过保护努力将秃鹫种群从2017年的约20只增加到现在的160多只[1]。这一成果反差鲜明，因为非洲秃鹫种群在过去50年内下降了80%-97%[1]，撒哈拉以南非洲有7种秃鹫被列为全球濒危或极度濒危物种[1]。
秃鹫面临的威胁多方面存在。非法狩猎、传统医学使用和栖息地丧失是种群灭绝的主要原因[1]。非洲约60%的秃鹫死亡源自中毒[1]，而秃鹫的生物学特性也加剧了种群恢复的难度——秃鹫成熟年龄为5-7岁，每年或两年才产一只雏鸟[1]。死亡秃鹫的经济价值不断攀升也推动了偷猎，从过去的25000-30000奈拉（18-22美元）上升至目前最高200000奈拉（145美元）[1]。2020年1月，几内亚比绍曾发现2000多只戴冠秃鹫死亡，许多遗骸被斩首[1]。阿夫卡-埃蒂蒂的社区主导保护模式为这一全球性困境提供了一个可复制的本地解决方案[1]。
Vulture populations across Africa have plummeted by 80–97% over the past five decades, with seven species in sub-Saharan Africa now classified as endangered or critically endangered.[1] In Nigeria, the crisis has been driven by illegal hunting, use in traditional medicine, and habitat loss.[1] The scale of the decline became starkly apparent in January 2020 when more than 2,000 crowned vultures were discovered dead in Guinea-Bissau, many of them beheaded.[1] Poisoning accounts for roughly 60% of vulture deaths across the continent.[1]
Yet in the southeastern Nigerian town of Afaka-Etiti, a community-led conservation effort has demonstrated a path toward recovery. Led by a local conservationist known as the "Vulture King," residents have increased the vulture population in their area from approximately 20 birds in 2017 to more than 160 today.[1] Community mobilization and local regulations have allowed this region to buck the broader trend.[1] The challenge remains formidable, however, as vultures do not reach reproductive maturity until between five and seven years of age and produce only one chick every one or two years.[1]