Death on wires: How power lines are killing Kenya's declining raptors

An electrocuted Marabou stock at a transformer located near Riadha house in Nairobi. [File, Standard]

High above Kenya’s plains, lakes and escarpments, birds of prey patrol the skies with remarkable precision. Eagles scan vast landscapes for movement, vultures circle silently above carcasses, while hawks and falcons dive through the air at astonishing speeds.

For centuries, these raptors have played a critical role in maintaining healthy ecosystems, acting as hunters, scavengers and natural regulators of wildlife populations.

Yet many of these magnificent birds are facing mounting pressures. Habitat loss, poisoning, climate change, persecution and collisions with human infrastructure are increasingly threatening species that were once abundant across the continent.

Now conservationists, engineers and power utilities are working together to tackle one of the less visible dangers facing birds of prey: electricity infrastructure.

Raptors are birds that hunt and feed on other animals. Characterised by keen eyesight, powerful talons and hooked beaks, the group includes eagles, vultures, hawks, falcons, kites, owls and buzzards.

According to BirdLife International, birds of prey are among the most important indicators of ecosystem health because they occupy the top of the food chain. When raptor populations decline, it often signals wider environmental problems.

Kenya is home to one of Africa’s richest raptor populations. Species such as the Martial Eagle, African Fish Eagle, Augur Buzzard, Bateleur and Verreaux’s Eagle can be found across the country’s diverse landscapes.

Their presence is not merely a spectacle for birdwatchers and tourists. Raptors provide essential ecological services that benefit both wildlife and people.

Vultures, often misunderstood because they feed on dead animals, are among nature’s most efficient sanitation workers. By rapidly consuming carcasses, they help prevent the spread of diseases that could affect wildlife, livestock and human populations.

Simon Thomsett, who runs a raptor rehabilitation centre at Soysambu Conservancy and works with organisations including the Peregrine Fund and the National Museums of Kenya, has treated more than 3,500 birds over the years.

Thomsett believes the conversation should extend beyond economics and ecosystem services. While birds of prey help control pests, attract tourists and contribute to healthy ecosystems, he argues that they also have intrinsic value as living creatures that share Kenya’s landscapes.

“Kenyans also should be like, wow, we had no idea these things are so fantastic,” he said.

It is a sentiment rooted in the belief that species do not have to justify their existence through their usefulness to people. For conservationists, protecting raptors is also about safeguarding a natural heritage that has shaped the Rift Valley’s skies for generations.

Natalie Kaddas, Chief Executive Officer of Kaddas Enterprises, describes vultures as “Mother Nature’s cleanup crew”.

Despite their importance, many raptor species are under pressure. Conservation organisations including BirdLife International and the International Union for Conservation of Nature have repeatedly warned about declining populations driven by habitat loss, poisoning, human disturbance and infrastructure-related mortality.

Among the less visible but increasingly significant threats is electricity infrastructure.

Elevated perches

Birds of prey frequently use electricity poles as elevated perches from which they can hunt or scan the landscape. While these structures provide ideal vantage points, they can also become deadly. Large birds may be electrocuted when they bridge electrical components, while others collide with overhead lines during flight.

Few people have witnessed the consequences more closely than Thomsett, a veteran conservationist who has spent six decades working with birds of prey.

“Today, we’ve been getting a lot more birds coming in from electrocution than from any other cause,” he said.

His rehabilitation centre receives birds injured through road accidents, poisoning, collisions and other threats. Yet electrocution has become increasingly common.

“When over half the birds that we get are electrocuted, all the other causes combined sort of fade into the background,” Thomsett said.

The challenge is particularly significant in Kenya’s Rift Valley, one of the world’s most important migration corridors for birds. At the heart of this landscape lies Soysambu Conservancy, situated between Lake Nakuru and Lake Elementaita.

Recognised as an Important Bird Area by BirdLife International, Soysambu Conservancy forms part of a major flyway used by migratory birds travelling between Europe, Asia and Africa.

“We are unbelievably well located in the Rift Valley,” said Thomsett. “You cannot imagine a better flyway.”

“All of Eurasia’s raptors and storks are under obligation to fly down the Rift Valley because it’s almost a free trip because of the winds.”

According to Stephen Githenya, a naturalist at Soysambu Conservancy who monitors power infrastructure risks, the area’s importance also increases its vulnerability.

“Soysambu Conservancy is an Important Bird Area,” he said. “We see many raptors coming to Soysambu from Eurasia at different times of the year.”

Githenya says power infrastructure has severe impacts on birds.

“The energy infrastructure has a negative impact on raptors in that we do get electrocution and electric shock,” he said. “A bird might fly away after a shock or fall on the ground and die from starvation or scavengers.”

One of the challenges facing conservationists is that the true scale of the problem remains difficult to quantify. Dead birds are not always found beneath power lines, as scavengers often remove carcasses before researchers can document them.

“Some of them go unnoticed because we have scavengers like hyenas, baboons and jackals,” Githenya explained.

Thomsett agrees that the lack of monitoring makes it difficult to estimate losses. “We don’t know how many birds of prey are getting electrocuted,” he said. “But we can guess quite effectively.”

For some species, even a few deaths can have serious consequences.

“Some birds here number less than the fingers in this hand,” Thomsett said. “If they land on our power poles, they will die and that’s the end of it.”

The risk is uneven across landscapes. In 2024, conservationists at Soysambu assessed power poles and ranked them by danger to birds.

“A power line on a ridge is a high risk,” Githenya said. “Still-hunting raptors favour elevated positions for scanning prey.” In open areas where trees are scarce, power poles become hunting perches.

“Put lethal power lines through a territory of still-hunting birds and they’re under obligation to sit on those lines,” Thomsett said.

The consequences extend beyond conservation. Wildlife interactions with electricity infrastructure can affect power reliability.

John Guda, an energy consultant and former Kenya Power manager, says wildlife-related outages have wide economic impacts.

“Outages cause significant economic losses. Homes are disrupted, businesses are crippled, healthcare services are interrupted, industries lose productivity and utilities incur repair costs,” he said.

In some cases, electrocuted animals trigger faults that spark fires along power corridors.

Infrastructure resilience

According to Guda, birds, monkeys, baboons, squirrels, snakes and even giraffes interact with power infrastructure, though birds are most vulnerable due to frequent perching.

“Power lines provide elevated perches where natural perches are scarce,” he said. “They offer vantage points for hunting and resting safely.”

Traditionally, responses to wildlife-related outages focused on restoration after incidents. However, experts now argue prevention is more effective.

Henry Pwani, Head of Research at the Institute of Energy Studies and Research, says wildlife-conscious design is essential as Kenya expands electrification.

“There is growing recognition that biodiversity conservation and infrastructure resilience are interconnected,” he said.

Kenya Power and Kaddas Enterprises are investing in long-term solutions, including training engineers on wildlife-safe infrastructure design.

The programme aims to embed conservation at planning stage to reduce risks and costs.

A pilot project at Soysambu is installing insulated covers on selected poles to reduce electrocution.

“Consumers experience outages but may not know why,” said Kaddas.

For conservationists, the intervention offers hope that development and biodiversity can coexist.

The challenge is not whether development happens, but how it proceeds without harming wildlife.

For now, focus remains on ensuring birds can continue their journeys safely across the Rift Valley.