Tourism and Environment

First-ever Kavango-Zambezi Trans-frontier Conservation Area elephant census begins

Published

3 years ago

August 9, 2022

BY MQONDISI DUBE

Five southern African countries, with more than half the continent’s elephants, are conducting a first-ever aerial census to determine the elephant population and how to protect it.

Light aircraft will fly simultaneously across the plains of Angola, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe — in a conservation area known as the Kavango-Zambezi Trans-frontier Conservation Area (KAZA) — in an exercise that will run until October 20.

KAZA is home to an estimated 220,000 elephants, and the five countries are keen to know the exact figures and the animals’ distribution patterns.

More than 130,000 of the animals are found in Botswana, which has the world’s largest elephant population.

Botswana’s National Parks and Wildlife director, Kabelo Senyatso, said the population count will be key in the management of the elephants.

The data primarily will be used to guide decision-making by the five partner states, Senyatso said, including land-use planning, managing human-elephant conflict, hunting, and tourism.

Senyatso said the exercise is critical for a region with a high number of trans-boundary elephants.

“It is important that as managers of the resource, we have a clear understanding of where they are and how they are distributed across the landscape,” Senyatso said.

“It is an exciting project, the first of its kind. We expect the data on the patterns to be analysed starting early 2023 such that by quarter one of 2023, we would already be having preliminary data that we can share with the public and for our decision-making.”

KAZA’s executive director, Nyambe Nyambe, said the elephant count will determine a scientific approach to the management of the elephant populations.

“It is highly anticipated that it will generate science-based information on the population distribution and other factors and is a reaffirmation of the KAZA partner states’ commitment to the joint pursuit of science-led conservation supported by accurate and reliable data,” Nyambe said.

“The results from this survey will become the cornerstone for the long-term protection and management of Africa’s largest trans-boundary elephant population.”

Botswana-based conservationist Map Ives said revealing the elephant migration patterns across the five countries’ borders is key.

“We hope to see what the results come up with,” Ives said.

“What we will be interested in seeing is not only how many elephants there are but the distribution, therefore, and what the likelihood of those elephants moving between countries is. We know that this population is one single contiguous population.”

While elephant populations are increasing in the KAZA region, elsewhere on the African continent the numbers are decreasing due to loss of habitat and poaching. – VOA

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Zimparks, VFWT join forces to rescue snared elephant

Published

1 week ago

August 5, 2025

VicFallsLive

BY NOKUTHABA DLAMINI

A dramatic rescue operation was carried out last week by the Victoria Falls Wildlife Trust, in collaboration with Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (Zimparks), to save a young female elephant from a wire snare.

According to a statement posted by the Victoria Falls Wildlife Trust on Facebook:

“Last week, we received an urgent call from Zimparks about a young female elephant in distress—a wire snare was tightly wrapped around her mouth and tusks.”

The elephant was spotted near Masuwe Lodge, where her herd was peacefully drinking at the waterhole. Acting swiftly, the trust’s team carefully separated the distressed elephant from her herd and darted her, allowing them to remove the snare and collect vital health samples.

Thankfully, the wire hadn’t cut deeply, and the young elephant was soon back on her feet, reunited with her family.

The Victoria Falls Wildlife Trust expressed gratitude to Zimparks and Adrian Read for their dedication to protecting wildlife, saying:

“Thank you to Zimparks and Adrian Read for their dedication to protecting our wildlife.”

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Zimparks defends trophy hunting of collared lion in Hwange

Published

1 week ago

August 4, 2025

VicFallsLive

BY NOKUTHABA DLAMINI

Zimbabwe’s wildlife authority, Zimparks, has defended the killing of a collared lion, Blondie, in Hwange National Park, despite widespread outrage and criticism from conservationists.

According to BBC News, Blondie, a well-known lion studied by University of Oxford academics, was killed by trophy hunters just outside Hwange National Park in late June. The lion was wearing a collar sponsored by Africa Geographic, a safari company, to support long-term conservation efforts.

In a press statement, Zimparks spokesperson Tinashe Farawo said:

“Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks) confirms that a recent hunt of a collared lion in Hwange National Park was legally conducted, with the necessary approvals and having fully complied with all regulations. Contrary to ongoing speculation, there was no illegality involved in this hunt. While collared animals are marked for research purposes, this does not exempt them from being legally hunted under regulated circumstances. We urge the public to stop spreading wrong information that may cause unnecessary alarm. ZimParks remains committed to transparent wildlife management upholding the regulations in all activities.”

According to BBC News, Simon Espley, CEO of Africa Geographic, expressed his dismay and anger over the incident, saying that Blondie’s prominent collar did not prevent him from being hunted. Espley also noted that Blondie was a breeding male in his prime, contradicting claims that trophy hunters only target old, non-breeding males.

The incident has drawn comparisons to the killing of Cecil the lion in 2015, which sparked widespread outrage and calls for stricter regulations on trophy hunting.

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Renowned conservationist Alan Elliott passes away at 86

Published

2 weeks ago

August 1, 2025

VicFallsLive

BY NOKUTHABA DLAMINI

The conservation world is mourning the loss of Alan Elliott, a pioneering conservationist and tourism operator who passed away this morning around 2AM at Materdei Hospital in Bulawayo.

Elliott, affectionately known as “Mandebele,” was 86 years old.

Photo by Charlene Hewat

Elliott’s contributions to conservation and tourism in Zimbabwe are immeasurable. He was one of the first people to bring tourism to Hwange, Zimbabwe’s largest national park, and founded Touch the Wild, a tourism operation that hosted numerous celebrities, including the Queen and Prince Philip.

We then contacted Charlene Hewat, a close associate of Elliott’s Presidential Elephant Research Trust (PERT), to explain further about his conservation work. Hewat described Elliott as an extraordinary conservationist who dedicated his life to protecting elephants. “Alan’s legacy is imprinted on the wild landscapes he loved so dearly and protected so fiercely,” Hewat said in a Facebook post.

In an interview, Hewat elaborated on Elliott’s work, highlighting his efforts to protect elephants in Hwange. “He went and got a decree from President (Robert) Mugabe to protect the presidential elephants, and he received that decree, and they agreed that they would not shoot any elephants within the Dete Hwange area,” Hewat explained.

Elliott’s passing has sent shockwaves throughout the conservation community, with many paying tribute to his remarkable legacy. “He’s a legend. Everybody knows him,” Hewat said. “He was an MP in Hwange, spoke fluent Ndebele, and knew a lot of the ministers. He’s just an amazing man, a legend for Zimbabwe.”

As a testament to his enduring legacy, Elliott had asked Hewat to carry on his work with the Presidential Elephant Research Trust. “It was his vision to promote young Zimbabwean researchers, and that’s something that I share and think we can take forward for the country and for the youth,” Hewat said.