X042 and the Meaning of the Universe

"The Ultimate Answer to Life, The Universe and Everything is...42" 

Douglas Adams, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

X042 is the name of one of the Cape Vultures I follow with a Cellular Tracking Technologies GPS/GSM transmitter. He (as confirmed with molecular sexing) was captured on November 26th, 2012 with 10 other Cape Vultures at Mkamabti Nature Reserve, Eastern Cape Province. He gets his name from the randomly assigned wing tag number. The X in his name stating he is from the Eastern Cape Province, and 42 was his number. A few days after he was released, he booked it to KwaZulu-Natal, about 85 km in 3 hours. With this movement, he was the first of the vultures I follow to venture into KwaZulu-Natal. He was confirming what others have suggested, that there is movement between the Drakensberg and Eastern Cape vulture populations. 

When the breeding season came in May 2013, I re-sighted X042 five times at Mkambati. I watched as it preened its back feathers to one side revealing the solar panel of the GPS transmitter.  It did not have a mate in 2013, and ended up spending that breeding season in Kamberg Nature Reserve in the Drakensberg hopping from vulture restaurant to vulture restaurant. 

This year (2014), I was happy to see X042 spending more time at Mkambati. I thought perhaps he was successful in finding a mate and was busy performing the Cape Vulture courtship routines. Then on June 3rd he left Mkambati and spent 7 nights at Umtamvuna Nature Reserve. This reserve used to support a Cape Vulture colony, but it is thought that too much disturbance and poisoned carcasses killed or forced the vultures to relocate. Perhaps X042 and a mate decided to recolonize Umtamvuna? I asked a fellow PhD candidate stationed in Port Edward to check out the roost site if they had time. But it wasn't long until X042 packed his bags and headed to Oribi Gorge. If I were a vulture, I too would head to Oribi Gorge to feed on the carcasses loving provided by Mike Neethling, a sugar cane farmer with a passion for Cape Vultures. There are also about 40 breeding pairs of Cape Vultures on the farm, and maybe X042 was looking for a mate there as well. 

X042 spent a few days at the colony on Mike's farm, then stumbled (numerous stationary points observed)  to the roosting cliffs in the Oribi Gorge Nature Reserve itself. It roosted a few more days on these cliffs until the very puzzling behavior occurred. He was seen flying toward to the Umzimkulu River at 10AM on June 19th. Then he stumbled around at the top of the cliff, before falling to the bottom of the gorge into the river. As I check the vulture's movements everyday I was aware of the strange behavior, but thought the bird was roosting on the cliff above the river and the GPS reading was bouncing off giving a false reading. 

When the bird did not move for three days, I asked Mike to take a look.  We were concerned that a person had gotten a hold of the vulture, as the locations by the river were at the end of a banana plantation road. Him and four staff members searched the thick thorn bush for two days straight with no luck.  I decided to join in the search party and drove down the following day. 

Armed with a GPS, Mike, his staff and I bundu bashed up the steep hill side. Numerous times we had to crawl through thick cover, scraping any skin that was exposed. We stopped at the site of the last GPS point and waited for a current reading from the unit. We waited there for an hour, waiting for a signal, but none came. We descended the hill. Our spirits were low, and the hope of finding the bird alive was fading. 

I decided to spend one more night and search the following day. A group of bird ringers was ringing in Mike's garden, and I enjoyed spending time with them. However, I kept thinking about the vulture, hoping it would give us a current GPS reading. When the transmission time for the transmitter came and went, I started to plan what to do next. As I was packing up my things, I clicked 'refresh' one last time to see if X042 had sent any info. And he did! The battery on the unit was getting dangerously low, so it was transmitting outside of the normal period. 

The group of ringers turned into volunteer vulture rescuers, and descended into the valley with only minor delays because of the bad road. We decided to go quickly and quietly to the vulture's last location and search in that area. Mike was leading the way and amazingly he saw a vulture hopping among a collection of rocks! The bird was alive! We quickly circled the bird and I secured it by throwing a towel over it. The bird was so weak and light. I still could not believe I was holding X042 and he was alive. We loaded him into the vulture box and transported our precious cargo back up the hill. Mission accomplished! A miracle! 

As soon as I reached the top of the hill, I phone Ben and Tammy from Raptor Rescue in Pietermarizburg, as the bird would be transferred to their care. I said good bye to the rescue team and happily drove about two hours to Pietermarizburg. I now know what a ambulance driver feels like! 

I get to the Raptor Rescue center and Ben and Tammy were waiting for me. We take a quick look at X042 and Ben administered amino acids through a feeding tube. Ben continued to monitor the vulture the rest of the weekend.

On Monday, Tammy and I took X042 to the vet. While the bird was under anesthesia, x-rays were taken. They revealed that X042 did not have any broken bones. Next, blood was taken to test for toxins. The blood did reveal X042 had high uric acid levels, which indicated renal failure. A high white blood cell count indicated that there was an  infection, despite no obvious wounds. In the vet's words "This bird is writing his entrance exams". 

During those hours at the vet, I felt like I was at a hospital. The vet was explaining to me how X042 was dying, and it felt like a family member or friend was in the next room lying on a hospital bed. I actually, had to take a deep breath and remind myself I was speaking to a vet and was in an animal hospital.  We waited to hear if certain drugs were safe to use on Cape Vultures. Information on drug safety in wildlife is severely lacking, and we were witnessing this first hand. As someone dealing with grief, I was angry with the vets because of the lack of information.

X042 woke up from the anesthesia and was transported back  to the Raptor Rescue center and was administered some more fluids. He was breathing heavily and was extremely weak, Tammy made sure he was comfortable. After Tammy left, Ben came in to check on X042 and discovered that he had passed. 

He died two days after he was rescued from the valley. We went back to the vet with X042 in a bag. We took the transmitter off and left him at the vet's office for the necropsy. We are anxiously awaiting the results from the toxin tests. Meanwhile, some of X042's last locations were searched on the ground for the presence of poisoned carcasses. None were found.

Working with threatened species like the Cape Vulture, one should be prepared for situations like this. But like most things in life, it catches you off guard. Everyone involved did the best they could, but X042's time on earth was done. I am thankful that we were able to document X042's life and death. We obtained information on how the transmitter looks on a wild bird after a year and a half. Neither the harness nor transmitter appeared to have any detrimental effects on the bird. 

Although we do not have a definite answer as to what caused X042's demise, we never would have known his story with out the GPS transmitter. I hope that his story reminds us that we share this world with wildlife and that their lives are unique. Take time out of your busy schedule and observe a wild animal. Imagine how many other people have gazed on that animal and the joy it brought those people. Wildlife does not belong to one person, but us all. It is up to all of us to live in harmony with the environment and use our resources in a sustainable manor. To live with the knowledge of (X0)42. 

X042 was found at the bottom of the Umzimkulu Valley.

The rescue of X042.

X042 under anesthesia. 

Dr. Oliver Tatham investigating X042.

X042's x-rays.

X042 waking up.

X042.

X042 waking up from the anesthesia.

X042