World Wildlife Fund

Day Ten: Vultures!
Srepok Wilderness Area is tucked against the Cambodia-Vietnam border, where WWF is working with local communities and provincial authorities to set up an ecotourism project. This project is designed after the South African game reserve model and aims to bring tourists from all over the world to fish in the river, go on safaris in the forests, and bird watch in one of the most exotic locations in the world. In return, the revenue will help support conservation of natural resources in the country. The manager of the project is Martin Von Kashke, the South African project advisor. He is very forthright and very patient. However, should anyone be caught littering in the camp area or in the forest, he insists on immediate push-ups as penance. It works remarkably well. With Martin is Keo Sopheak, the project officer that serves as the government counterpart from the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. Sopheak is Martin's right hand man and has been training under him for the last two years.

The Mereuch camp is a collection of large basic wooden lodges. The floors and walls are rough slabs of wood with natural chinks between the planks. No one really stays inside that much. Mostly, people sit outside in the yard, where there is a partly open kitchen. Two peacocks and a pet turtle dominate the kitchen's front yard, which gently slopes into the river. Breakfast is an idyllic repast listening to the river and watching the forest on the other side.

After breakfast, Sopheak will take us to the vulture restaurant! This is a clearing in the forest where a carcass of a buffalo or goat is left putrefying for a few days, which serves as a neon "Big Special" sign for the vultures in the area. It is a successful way for Martin and Sopheak to keep count and monitor the vulture populations. This is also an opportunity for us to test out how this works as a tourist attraction.

On our way there, Martin sets a quick pace and wants complete silence as we walk in file. When we get to the site, we walk up to the carcass. Sopheak brings me up to it very very closely so I don't miss the bones laid bare, the feasting maggots, and the putrid scent. He and Martin assess how much meat has already been consumed. They also find dhole, wild dog, signs in the area.
Soon, we settle a little distance away in a camouflaged tent with small openings that we can see out of. After an hour, my leg is cramping. After two, it feels like it has fallen off. And, then we are rewarded. Two red-headed vultures alight, which is quite rare. Martin is ecstatic. We return happy.