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Interviews

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Interviews

Interview with Chris Bowden and André Botha about vultures in Asia and Africa and the IUCN Vulture specialist group

by Markusjais

September 13, 2013

1) Where do you work and what do you do with vultures? Chris: I am based at RSPB Headquarters in Sandy, England, although shifting later...

Interview with Ralph Buij about the Grasshopper Buzzard

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Interviews

Interview with Ralph Buij about the Grasshopper Buzzard

by Markusjais

April 28, 2013

Ralph Buij (1976) is a Dutch biologist who obtained his MSc at the University of Utrecht in 2000. His thesis subject was the...

Interviews

Interview with Eric Ole Reson about Maasai attitudes towards vultures

by Markusjais

February 6, 2013

Eric Ole Reson hails from Narok county and recently completed a Masters degree in Wildlife Biology from Clemson University in the USA. He...

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Interviews

Interview with Ann Koeslag about the Black Sparrowhawk of the Cape Peninsula in South Africa

by Markusjais

November 20, 2012

When you travel to southern Africa to look for raptors it is easy to focus mostly on either the large and spectacular like the...

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Interviews

Interview with Garth Batchelor about the African Crowned Eagle in South Africa

by Markusjais

April 21, 2012

In January 2012 I was on a raptor and wildlife watching trip in South Africa with Bill Clark, Sergio Seipke and raptor...

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Interviews

Interview with Sonja Krueger about the Bearded Vulture

by Markusjais

March 17, 2012

I have had the privilege of working with Sonja Krüger and observe her dedication and drive to conserve the Bearded Vulture in southern...

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Interviews

Interview with Craig Whittington-Jones about the African Grass Owl

by Markusjais

February 16, 2012

Craig was born and raised Cape Town. He was an undergrad and PhD student (Zoology) at Rhodes University in Grahamstown. Since 2000 he has...

Interview with Andrew Jenkins about the Taita Falcon

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Interviews

Interview with Andrew Jenkins about the Taita Falcon

by Markusjais

November 6, 2011

Andrew Jenkins is one of the most prominent raptor biologists in South Africa and has been studying Peregrine Falcons on the Cape Peninsula...

Interview with Alan Kemp about the Martial Eagle in Southern Africa

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Interviews

Interview with Alan Kemp about the Martial Eagle in Southern Africa

by Markusjais

August 29, 2011

I first met Alan years ago when he was the curator of birds at the Pretoria Museum. I was just beginning field and museum work on the...

Simon Thomsett on the African Crowned Eagle – Part 3

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Interviews

Simon Thomsett on the African Crowned Eagle – Part 3

by Markusjais

July 6, 2011

This is part 3 of Simon Thomsett’s writings about the Crowned Eagle. See here for part 1 and here for part 2. Movements To my...

Dr. Ralph Buij

Ralph Buij is the Africa and Asia Conservation Director for The Peregrine Fund. Ralph has always been passionate about raptors and magnificent African Eagles, such as the Crowned and Martial Eagles portrayed in Leslie Brown´s books, which captured his imagination at a very early age. Following wildlife studies and work in South Africa and the depths of Gabon’s rainforests, Ralph took over the coordination of Leiden University’s research program in far northern Cameroon. While in that position, he carried out the field work for his PhD thesis on ‘Raptors in changing West African Savannas’, which led to the successful defense of his Ph.D. thesis in 2013. He studied both Afro-tropical and Palearctic raptor species, revealing new details about the breeding biology of Grasshopper Buzzards and African Swallow-tailed Kites. He is thrilled to work with The Peregrine Fund’s team and partners in Africa and Asia, trying to save Critically Endangered vultures using state-of-the-art technology such as GSM trackers, and using these same trackers to gain insight into the foraging ecology of African and Asian eagles. This works helps him and his collaborators understand how raptors cope with the various pressures on them. Learning how to help them survive the onslaught of threats, such as poisoning, is what motivates him.