A birds of prey centre in Knutsford is helping efforts to protect endangered vultures in South Africa, as first reported by BBC News.

Gauntlet Birds of Prey, opened by Graham Bessant 30 years ago, has funded conservation projects for the past 18 years, including a "vulture ambulance" based in Kruger National Park that can reach the sites of mass poisonings, the BBC reported.

"Vultures are vital in every way because they're a clean-up service - they're pretty much like nature's binmen," Jake Bessant, who works at the centre, told the BBC. He and his sister Daisy travel to South Africa each year to work with projects including Mokala National Park, which has been declared a "vulture safe zone".

African vulture species have declined by up to 97% over the last 50 years, according to BirdLife International, largely because of poaching and poisoning.

Back in Cheshire, the centre says it has had a record year with 29 chicks hatched. With 180 birds now living there, it told the BBC it has outgrown its site and has applied for planning permission for a new facility. According to its own website, the park is home to six species of vulture and holds an annual International Vulture Awareness Day to raise funds for African vulture conservation.

Sources: BBC News (9 October 2026); Gauntlet Birds of Prey.

This article was produced with the help of AI tools and checked by an editor against the sources above.