Combatting the spread of rabies from the air with the help of the Bateleurs

Abstract

In South Africa the World Heritage Site of the Cradle of Humankind in Gauteng Province, is a wild area of some 175 km and whilst not a game reserve as such, it is a wilderness area and home to numerous wild animals. Among the inhabitants are black backed jackals and honey badgers, where a rabies outbreak is determined to have occurred. Prof Katja Koeppel, veterinary wildlife specialist and Professor of Wildlife Health in the University of Pretoria’s Faculty of Veterinary Science have a plan of bait dropping. Quite simply a bait with a base ingredient of fishmeal is laced with rabies vaccine and then air dropped in the region. This bait provides inoculation for up to a year and if there were any animals (and there certainly are) currently infected with rabies, then those will perish within this year of coverage and with the surviving remainder being inoculated, the problem is hopefully solved