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Where to see

Where to see the Cape Vulture in South Africa

Hosts have recorded the Cape Vulture at stays in or beside uKhahlamba-Drakensberg Park, Kruger National Park and De Hoop Nature Reserve.

Gyps coprotheres · Vulnerable

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Cape Vulture
Photo: (c) Brian du Preez, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), uploaded by Brian du Preez

Planning a trip

When and where to find the Cape Vulture

Hosts have recorded the Cape Vulture at stays in or beside uKhahlamba-Drakensberg Park, Kruger National Park and De Hoop Nature Reserve.

Best hours of the day

  • Late morning to mid-afternoon. Raptors soar once the sun raises thermals.
  • Early morning. Often perched while the air warms.

Where to base yourself

  • KwaZulu-Natal

    KwaZulu-Natal

    uKhahlamba-Drakensberg · Giants Castle · Hluhluwe-Imfolozi

    Self-drive
    Stays in KwaZulu-Natal
    KwaZulu-Natal
  • Limpopo

    Limpopo

    Kruger · Marakele

    Self-drive
    Stays in Limpopo
    Limpopo
  • Western Cape

    Western Cape

    De Hoop · Marloth

    Self-driveMalaria-free
    Stays in Western Cape
    Western Cape

Ways to look

Drive yourself

Your own vehicle and pace, on the park's roads.

Where hosts record it

KrugerDe HoopMarakeleKambergMarloth

IUCN Red List

Vulnerable

Species

Gyps coprotheres

Records

1,179

iNaturalist observations

Every booking on Spekboom supports conservation.

Questions travellers ask

A record means a host has seen the Cape Vulture on the property or nearby. It is never a guarantee of a sighting.

Which parks and reserves are best for the Cape Vulture in South Africa?

Hosts on Spekboom have recorded the Cape Vulture at stays in or beside uKhahlamba-Drakensberg Park, Kruger National Park, De Hoop Nature Reserve, Marakele National Park, Giants Castle Game Reserve and Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park and other reserves. A record means a host has seen it on the property or nearby, which makes these the places to base yourself; it is never a guarantee of a sighting on any given day.

Where can you see the Cape Vulture in South Africa?

The Cape Vulture is most recorded in KwaZulu-Natal (24% of records), Western Cape (17% of records), Limpopo (15% of records), based on 1,179 iNaturalist observations. 38 places to stay on Spekboom in South Africa have recorded the Cape Vulture on site or nearby.

When is the best time to see the Cape Vulture?

The Cape Vulture is recorded throughout the year, so no month is the wrong month to look for it. For the parks where hosts record it most, these are the best seasons they give. uKhahlamba-Drakensberg Park: year-round, dry season May-Sep; Kruger National Park: Apr-Sep; De Hoop Nature Reserve: Sep-Apr, flowers Aug-Oct; Marakele National Park: May-Sep, dry season. In the dry months animals concentrate at water and the grass is short.

What is the conservation status of the Cape Vulture?

The Cape Vulture (Gyps coprotheres) is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List.

What is the Cape Vulture?

The Cape griffon or Cape vulture (Gyps coprotheres), also known as Kolbe's vulture, is an Old World vulture in the family Accipitridae. It is endemic to southern Africa, and is found mainly in South Africa, Lesotho, Botswana and in some parts of northern Namibia. It nests on cliffs and lays one egg per year. Since 2015, it has been classified as Endangered.

Stays that give back

Where to stay for a chance to see the Cape Vulture

Every stay on the Cape Vulture page lists the species its host has recorded on or near the property. A record is a sighting, never a promise.

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