ZIMBABWE: Ethiopian Airlines Partner With Zimbabwe Tourism

Zimbabwe's Tourism Authority and Ethiopian Airlines will this year cooperate in various joint marketing initiatives aimed at promoting travel to the country in the Spanish and Portuguese markets.

'We are excited to be working with progressive destinations like Zimbabwe through the ZTA. We see a lot of potential in the Madrid- Victoria Falls route so it is our undertaking to nurture and develop this route together with them. We are planning on having roadshows and particularly in Spain and Portugal' said Mr. Alemu Bekele, Area Manager for the airline in Spain and Portugal.

Speaking at the same occasion the Chief Executive of the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority Mr. Karikoga Kaseke expressed his appreciation how Ethiopian Airlines has continued to respond to Zimbabwe Tourism's needs.

'Ethiopian Airlines have consistently supported us and always been forthcoming to our calls for close collaboration in the areas of joint marketing and promotion. We are optimistic that close cooperation will yield more results for mutual benefit. So this year we will fully implement the MoU we signed with them. It is our wish to expand this collaboration to cover other markets in the entire Europe and beyond' said Mr. Kaseke.

The ZTA Chief Executive als added that apart from Ethiopian Airlines there were other airlines that have expressed interest in flying into the resort town of Victoria Falls.

'A number of airlines have shown interest in flying to Victoria Falls and as a government we will continue to court more airlines because we want to see the full utilization of the recently upgraded and commissioned Victoria Falls International Airport. It has untapped potential to become a hub of air traffic in the sub region' he added.

The ZTA and Ethiopian Airlines signed a Memorandum of Understanding for joint marketing and cooperation last year. In the spirit of the same pact, the two parties have continued to work together particularly during Zimbabwe’s premier business exchange, the Sanganai / Hlanganani World Tourism Expo that saw the hosting of travel trade buyers from Spain and Portugal. Meanwhile, more promotional programmes for this market are lined up for this year and further into the future.

Ethiopian Airlines will, as reported here before, from 26th of March be flying into Victoria Falls 4 times a week.Tourists flying into VFA can, after visiting the falls, also explore the not too distant Hwange National Park and other attractions including the Great Zimbabwe monuments.

ZIMBABWE: Endangered Cheetah Kept Five Cubs Alive For 10 Months

A cheetah from Hwange National Park has apparently managed to keep her five cubs alive for 10 months.

This is cheetah HNP013 who is six years old, according to Zimbabwe’s Parks and Wildlife Management Authority.

The news is doubly heartening, given the threatened status of cheetahs in Zimbabwe.
News24 reported back in September that Zimbabwe’s cheetah population had declined by up to 85% in the last 15 years with no more than 170 of the big cats left. Somehow cheetah hunts are still being advertised for 2017 in Zimbabwe.

Back in 1999, Zimbabwe’s cheetah population was estimated at a minimum of 1 520. Around 1 200 of these cheetahs lived on commercial farmlands while 320 were found in National Parks areas, according to records quoted by a survey by the Cheetah Conservation Project of Zimbabwe carried out between 2013 and 2015.

Now that figure is down to between 150 and 170. That includes both adult and independent adolescent cheetahs.

Changes in land use including a fast-track land reform programme have had a “severe impact” on Zimbabwe’s cheetah population, leading to a loss of biodiversity.

Cheetah range in Zimbabwe has shrunk by around 61%, the survey says. The distribution of cheetahs is very different to what it was in the late 1990s: more than 80% of cheetahs left now in Zimbabwe are found not on farms but in protected areas like national parks and wildlife conservancies. In these areas, human-wildlife conflict is less of a threat.
The survey quotes a paper showing that around 1975, there were only an estimated 400 cheetahs in Zimbabwe.

Their habit of preying on livestock made them especially vulnerable to farmers here as elsewhere. Farmers often preferred a quick, quiet kill method rather than the onerous process of getting a permit to kill the problem animal.

‘Shoot, shovel and shut up’
The survey describes the farmers’ methods – chillingly – as “shoot, shovel and shut up”.
But in the 1990s, a number of management strategies led to something of a recovery in the Zimbabwe’s cheetah population.

The organisers of this survey used a variety of methods to try to get as accurate a picture as possible of current cheetah populations, asking tourists, farmers and rangers for cheetah sightings but also travelling around much of Zimbabwe to interview those in areas cheetahs might be found.

Almost all of Zimbabwe’s cheetahs are now found in the south of the country, in Matabeleland South, Matabeleland North and Masvingo provinces, the survey shows.

Sadly, this massive decline in the numbers and the range of cheetahs in Zimbabwe follows global trends. According to this survey, there are only around 6,700 cheetahs left in the world (around 4 190 of them are in southern Africa). That decline is due partly to habitat loss worldwide, but it’s also due to loss of prey and human persecution. The capture of cheetahs for the illegal pet trade is also a threat.

In the wild, cheetahs are often confused with leopards. Among several differences, cheetahs have a ‘tear-line’, extending from the inside of the eyes to the mouth. Chunkier in build, leopards do not have a tear-line

Lion Hunting Not Necessary

Cecil the lion's death just outside Zimbabwe's Hwange National Park put a recognisable face on the difficult problem of setting policy for lion hunting. Conservation biologists and wildlife managers have been grappling with the issue across sub-Saharan Africa. But there is no one simple answer.

Trophy hunting can be used to generate revenue and promote the protection of ecosystems. These might otherwise be converted to agriculture, accelerating the continent's rapid loss of wildlife for reasons that include habitat conversion and fragmentation.

On the other hand, lions are both rare and highly coveted by hunters. Field studies consistently show that lion numbers in Zimbabwe, Zambia, Tanzania, Cameroon and Mozambique have declined with over-harvesting - which is excessive numbers lost due to trophy hunting. This has occurred despite scientific guidelines to promote sustainability.

Lions, and their habitat, have declined by 70% over recent decades. This is due to a combination of habitat loss and fragmentation, decline of prey numbers, snaring, human conflict, retaliatory killing and excessive legal hunting. Most nations have a network of protected areas, including national parks that do not allow hunting and game reserves or game management areas that do.

Given that the status quo is not working, what can be done to save the king of beasts? That is the question our recent study involving scientists and managers at the Zambian Carnivore Programme, Montana State University and the Zambian Department of National Parks and Wildlife attempted to answer.

The current strategy for sustainable hunting of lions is known as age-restricted harvesting. This is where only male lions above a certain age, typically six years, can legally be shot.

In theory, such a system can be sustainable. This is because old males form a small part of most lion populations and these old males have often been ejected from prides by younger and stronger males. In practice, there are problems with identifying a male's age just by looking at him. There are also challenges enforcing age-based rules.

A more fundamental problem is that existing guidelines were based on patterns in a very well-protected, growing lion population in Tanzania's Serengeti National Park. Most other lion populations face tougher conditions.

Our study aimed to determine whether lion hunting can be made sustainable for populations facing more typical challenges, including low prey numbers and the risk of being snared. These challenges are almost universal at this point for large lion populations in major ecosystems. Small lion populations in fenced areas tend to face fewer problems, but these populations are all small.

We projected population dynamics for African lions 25 years into the future, both without hunting and under a range of hunting scenarios. We used mathematical models that were based on seven years of data from lions in the Luangwa Valley, home to Zambia's crown jewel, the South Luangwa National Park.

The scenarios we considered included maximum quotas for hunting blocks, age restriction, hunting periods punctuated by recovery periods with no hunting, and combinations of these strategies. Our analysis is based on hunting blocks located adjacent to a fully protected national park. This is often the case in the real world, with lions moving regularly between protected and hunted landscapes.

Many people might consider the death of Cecil a few meters from a national park boundary to be an anomaly, but our analysis found that lions were typically shot less than a kilometre from the park boundary. This is well within the normal range of movements of lions living in the park.

We confirmed that age restriction is helpful, but most hunting scenarios resulted in a long-term decline in trophy-aged males. This is both detrimental to lion populations and undesirable for hunters if they are concerned with sustainability. The best strategy requires a combination of tactics.

The analysis showed that a decrease in the availability of prime-aged males is minimised by the combination of a block quota of one, a three-on/three-off cycle of hunting and recovery, and a minimum hunted age of seven or eight years. In other words, hunting blocks can sustainably be allocated one trophy hunt per year. That is about one lion per 2,000km² of at least seven years old, for three consecutive years, followed by three years for recovery.

It is also clear that trophy fees must be increased to account for the reduced quota if hunting is to effectively yield protection of public land. Such an increase could perhaps be paired with paying some portion of the fee only if a lion is shot, rather than paying proactively. This would reduce the incentive to shoot a lion, any lion.

Unfortunately, even this scenario is likely to allow a long-term lion decline if the problems of poaching or habitat degradation worsen. Trophy hunting by itself might be sustainable, but not when added to a background of poaching, habitat loss and retaliatory killing.

If it does not effectively contribute to controlling the problems of prey depletion and lion snaring in areas that allow hunting, trophy hunting at any level will not be sustainable. Lion hunting cannot continue to rely on drawing lions out of adjacent, fully protected national parks at unsustainable rates, as it recently has.

Such a situation is part of the problem, not the solution. With serious reforms to employ a combination of quotas, age restriction and recovery periods, perhaps this slow motion extinction can be reversed. Future generations will judge us harshly if we stand by and let the last lion leave this world.

ZIMBABWE: Hwange National Park Discovered The Rotting Carcasses Of 26 Elephants

ON October 1 last year, rangers in Hwange National Park discovered the rotting carcasses of 26 elephants killed in a fresh round of cyanide poisoning, a week after 14 other jumbos had been found dead in the giant wildlife estate.

The discoveries created a sombre mood within the wildlife and tourism sectors and dominated global headlines, coming soon after the highly publicised slaughter of Cecil the lion, which triggered waves of demonstrations in the United States against the medical doctor who killed the animal.

A month later, Jumbo killings by a rising army of increasingly sophisticated and highly equipped poaching syndicates brought the toll to over 400 elephants killed in the frenzy of mindless slaughters.

Tourism and Hospitality Industry Minister, Walter Mzembi described continuing killings in Hwange as "wildlife terrorism".

Over 300 elephants were poisoned in the 14 000 square kilometre wildlife conservancy in August 2013, ironically, just as Zimbabwe was hosting the United Nations World Tourism Organisation general assembly in the resort town of Victoria Falls.

These numbers are frightening.

If new data released in November by the African Wildlife Foundation (AWF) is taken into consideration, the full picture of the plunder becomes scary.

AWF said the country lost 7 000 mammals in the Zambezi Valley alone between 1994 and 2015, which painted a grim picture of the state of poaching across the country.

Wildlife belts stretch from the Gonarezhou National Park in the south eastern parts of the country to rich game sanctuaries such as the Save Valley Conservancy in Masvingo province.

"We have been losing a lot of elephants in the past 20 years," said Alistair Pole of the AWF, who spoke in November at a stakeholder conference convened to explore measures to reduce wildlife poaching.

"A census in the Zambezi Valley showed there were 19 000 elephants in 2001. There are now 12 000 elephants, that is a loss of 7 000. The real loss is about 20 000 to 24 000 elephants," Pole said before posing a question; "Where are the elephants going?"

Using Pole's statistics, the country could have lost as much as US$2,8 billion through elephant killings since 1994.

This figure is based on only the number of elephants that have been recorded as killed.

Hundreds or even thousands more disappear without trace or records in the parks that have clearly become too big to police for a country battling an economic crisis to police.

An elephant cost US$120 000 in sport hunting.

"Zimbabwe's wildlife sector at the moment is not very healthy," said Pole.

"It is a bit sick. We have to diagnose the core problem and create a healthy wildlife sector," he said, urging authorities to move away from the centralised wildlife management model.

But while conservationists and animal lovers were grieving over the relentless slaughter of the giant beasts, focus shifted to the severe economic impact of poaching in Zimbabwe.

The country estimates that the tourism industry will be contributing 5,1 percent to its US$14 billion gross domestic product (GDP) this year.

In Zimbabwe, tourism, alongside the manufacturing sector, agriculture and mining have been recognised in successive economic blueprints as key pillars.

Mzembi has rolled out an ambitious plan for the industry to generate US$5 billion by 2020, from about US$1 billion this year.

He acknowledges that it will be difficult, although still possible, to achieve this target if the frenzy of wildlife poaching continues.

Mzembi says 70 percent of the attractions that Zimbabwe markets to the world are wildlife based.

The more the decimation continues, the gloomier the outlook.

Yet first, it was the black rhino to face the dreaded arms of the poachers.

Rhinos are now almost extinct, and those tourists that were trooping to view them could be eyeing other African destinations.

Now it is the scourge of elephants poisoning which could undermine the attractiveness of Zimbabwe as a tourism hub.

The poachers sell the ivory in the Far East where there is huge demand.

A range of other animals, such as buffaloes, giraffes, leopards, birds and snakes have continued to be slaughtered illegally.

The minister sees this as significantly diminishing the Zimbabwean wildlife product.

"The tourism brand can be easily undermined by the scourge of wildlife poaching," says Mzembi.

"Illegal trade in wildlife is presenting the third largest contraband business after trade in illegal drugs and weapons. We need to treat poaching as a security threat. It is wildlife terrorism. That is what it is," he says, acknowledging that "it has become difficult to control illegal exploitation of wildlife".

Poachers have become sophisticated.

Illegal hunters are using hytec aids like Global Positioning Systems and advanced slaughter machines, some of which the Park and Wildlife Management Authority of Zimbabwe is yet to acquire for its rangers.

The magnitude of the destruction goes beyond the targeted animals.

In the case of cyanide poisoning, the killing of elephants has become an existential threat to biodiversity, as it wipes out all genetic species in the ecosystem that come into contact with the contaminated carcass, water or soil.

Vultures have been wiped out on the scenes of elephant carcasses.

In turn, every creature that feeds on the dead vultures has been killed.

The cycle is vicious, and can easily put human life into danger.

What this demands is that after every round of killings, the environment would urgently require restoration and restocking of flora and fauna.

Otherwise the country could be confronted by another dinosaur curse.

"We do not want to get there. But ultimately, tourism is the major casualty," says Mzembi, who laments the lack of resources to equip the Parks and Wildlife Management Authority of Zimbabwe.

Weak institutions, lack of integrated and collaborative conservation management and natural resource governance models, as well as the rise in global markets motivating demand for ivory and rhino horns, are among the factors driving poaching.

The effects of poaching on elephant populations in Zimbabwe are already becoming visible.

Many elephants are fleeing poachers in Zimbabwe, enduring a blistering long journey to Botswana's Chobe National Park.

In Chobe, the impressive herds have given tourists an unsurpassed opportunity to view jumbos through a buffet of angles -- on the banks, on the land, in water and up close.

Tourism officials in Kasane, Botswana, acknowledge that the booming elephant herds in the region have been boosted by constant arrivals from Zimbabwe.

Some of them never return once they cross the border into Botswana.

"The elephants are coming from Zimbabwe fleeing poaching," says Mokganedi Ntana, tourism development manager for Botswana Tourism in Kasane.

"The poachers' methods are cruel. Here we are strict, we are trying to control mass tourism because you put pressure on the ecosystem if you have too many lodges," he said.

In 1994, Botswana had 70 000 elephants, but this number had increased to 212 000 in 2013.

During dry seasons, Zimbabwe's national parks also run out of grazing pastures and water, triggering the migration of animals into Chobe.

"We are making more day trips into Chobe than before," said a tour guide at Kazungula Border Post, the gateway into north eastern Botswana.

"Elephants and other animals are migrating into Chobe from Zambezi National Park because Botswana has put in place strong anti-poaching measures backed by the army. There are also better grazing pastures during the dry season."

Tour operators have been busy transferring over 150 tourists into Chobe every day from Victoria Falls, specifically to view wild animals.

The tourists combine day cruises and game drives with more extensive trips inside Botswana, which include visiting the world renowned Okavango Delta, where they have better chances of seeing leopards, lions, elands, grant's gazelles, roan antelopes, lesser kudu, hartebeest, giraffes, crocodiles, hippos, and beisa oryx, thought to be extinct in this region.

The drive from Victoria Falls takes about 90 minutes.

"In Chobe you are 90 percent guaranteed that you will see animals," says Charles Chakanya, marketing director at Zambezi Explorer, the largest cruise vessel in Victoria Falls.

This is the crisis that has been haunting Mzembi, the Tourism Minister.

ZIMBABWE: Conservationist Blames Zim Wildlife Exports

Zimbabwe's decision to export wild animals to China will kill local tourism and drive communities living near nature reserves deeper into poverty, a leading conservationist has warned.

Zimbabwe Conservation Trust (ZCTF) chairman Johnny Rodrigues said only a few well connected people would benefit from the trade, which the government claims is meant to finance conservation efforts.

Zimbabwe has in recent years come under fire from conservationists after it sold elephants to China under what was described as inhumane conditions. Environment minister Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri recently said the country would export more wild animals such as lions, baboons and hyenas to the Asian country because government was not able to fund conservation activities.

Last July, the government sent 24 young elephants to Chimelong Safari Park near Guangzhou in China, raising the ire of conservationists worldwide.

However, Rodrigues who is credited for identifying the killer of world famous Cecil the lion near Hwange National Park last year, said the exports would only fuel poaching as communities would feel disempowered.

"The people who are supposed to be benefitting from these species are not and as a result people now rely on illegal hunting," Rodrigues told Radio VOP.

"It does not work and as a result these animals are being depleted from their nature.

"As we speak there are plans to export more different species to China and that is stupid because all these animals belong to Zimbabweans, they don't belong to the ministers or any politician." The government has in the past expressed unhappiness over Rodrigues' conservation work, claiming his reports on poaching activities were harming the country's image, but the activist said he would not be silenced.

"I have nothing to hide but I tell the truth, the thing is solutions are there and we know how to solve our problems facing the country but there are certain individuals who are benefitting at the expense of local people," Rodrigues said.

"As a result (of imbalances) poverty will never be eradicated and right now people are suffering because everything is politically oriented."

He said exporting wild animals to China would also endanger the local tourism industry while boosting the Asian country's economy.

"If we export the animals we will be cutting off the nose to spite faces and it is not supposed to work that way," Rodrigues charged.

"Currently the biggest foreign currency earner for the country is tourism and if we sell those animals where will the tourists come from?

ZIMBABWE: Five Reasons To Visit The Magnificent Hwange National Park

From the spectacular Victoria Falls to the beautiful Mana Pools, Zimbabwe is a country of many wonders. One of the most underrated yet magnificent travel treats the country has to offer is Hwange National Park. Being Zimbabwe’s largest national park, Hwange provides a spectacular safari experience.

Here are five reasons to visit Hwange National Park

Sunsets
Africa has often been recognized as a continent with remarkable sunsets. Hwange is no different. View the silhouette of an elephant in front of an acacia tree clearly painted against the blood red African sky as the sun slowly makes its way below the horizon.

Abundant wildlife
Hwange National Park has over 100 mammal and 400 bird species within its borders. It is Zimbabwe’s largest national park boasting a diverse landscape that ranges from dense teak forest to open grassy savannah and scarce plains. A game drive in this extensive wildlife playground gives a visitor a thrilling sneak peek into the wildest Africa. From gracious zebras to impressive elephants, there is always something to see in Hwange.

The Big 5
Many safari goers’ dream is to see the ‘Big 5’. Although spotting each of the five famous mammals is not guaranteed, Hwange is home to the Big 5 and offers a great opportunity for sightings. Seeing an elephant leisurely walking across the grassland or a pride of lions lazing in the shade is a picture worthy occasion.

Close up game viewing
Some of Hwange’s gifts to safari lovers are underground viewing hideaways. Due to the absence of permanent surface water wildlife in the national park relies on waterholes for hydration. Thus, a waterhole is one of the best wildlife viewing locations in the area. Slide into the Hide Safari Camp’s waterhole hide and observe the Hwange animals up close and personal. Tucked away in your hiding spot and quietly observing wildlife strolling past takes game viewing to a different level…literally.

African wild dog
Hwange is one of the remaining places to see the now rare African wild dog. These wild animals, with big, round ears and spotty coats are highly endangered, and seeing them in the wild is simply a privileged occasion.

ZIMBABWE: Elephant Discovered Dead After Cyanide Poisoning

Another elephant has been found dead of cyanide poisoning in north-western Zimbabwe, two months after around 60 elephants were killed in the area, it was reported on Sunday.

The decomposing body of the elephant was found last week in Sikumi Forest next to Hwange National Park, where poachers have poisoned dozens of elephants since September.

The elephant had been dead for around 10 days.

Poachers had not had time to remove the elephants’ tusks, according to the report.

An official from the Forestry Commission, Armstrong Tembo, said “On Tuesday last week our workers recovered the carcass of an elephant that was decomposing. The ivory was also recovered.

“The cause of the death is a mixture of salt and cyanide,” he added.

Poachers have commonly poisoned waterholes with cyanide, a fast-acting poison, or they have poisoned salt-licks near waterholes.

There was a hiatus in the poisonings in Hwange over November and December.

One possible contributing factor may be the lack of rain, which has seen elephant numbers reduced in parts of the park as the animals move away to look for water and food.

The Bhejane Trust, a conservation group that operates in the vast national park, said in its latest report this week: “With very few elephants in the Sinamatella area still, we have not had to worry much about any repeat of the cyanide killings.”

Twenty-two elephants were poached in a single poisoning incident in Sinamatella, in the north of the park, in October. The authorities believe at least two gangs were involved in the attacks. At least seven people have been reportedly arrested so far, though it is far from certain that the ringleaders have been caught.

A man had been arrested at a logistics company in Bulawayo after he was found with more than a tonne of cyanide — and no licence for it — in his warehouse.

Bulawayo is on the main road between the Zimbabwean capital Harare and Hwange National Park.

ZIMBABWE: Arrested Reporter Appears In Court In A Mugabe Jacket

The irony was writ large in the looping signature of President Robert Mugabe.

One of three state media journalists who appeared at the Harare Magistrates' Court on Wednesday was wearing a jacket popular with admirers of the long-time Zimbabwe president.

Tinashe Farawo, who like his colleagues Mabasa Sasa and Brian Chitemba was handcuffed for his bail appearance, wore a black jacket with Mugabe's signature embroidered on the back and front.

All three men work for the official Sunday Mail, which is loyal to Mugabe, 91, and his government.

Their arrest on Monday over a story alleging police involvement in an elephant poisoning scandal sparked interest because journalists employed by state media are normally less at risk of arrest than reporters from Zimbabwe's private press.

In fact, six journalists from the official press were placed under Western sanctions during Zimbabwe's political and economic crisis because their overwhelmingly pro-state reporting was judged to be an "incitement to hatred", according to comments from top EU official Aldo dell'Ariccia in 2011.

'Let's march against the madness'

Reporters from the private press have come out in solidarity with their Sunday Mail colleagues, with Zenzele Ndebele of Radio Dialogue tweeting: "I think we need to march as journalists against the madness."

Trevor Ncube, publisher of the Zimbabwe Independent, Standard and Newsday papers, said in a tweet: "You Zimpapers, publishers of the Sunday Mail have 100% of our support in having your journalists released. This has been our life for the past 2 decades."

Garments bearing Mugabe's signature first appeared ahead of elections in 2013. Much sleeker than party T-shirts or wraparound skirts bearing the president's face, they appeal to hip urban professionals keen to proclaim their support for their leader.

Around sixty elephants have been poisoned with cyanide in Hwange National Park in recent weeks in a crime that bears the hallmarks of an organised poaching syndicate. The Sunday Mail said an assistant police commissioner was being investigated in connection with the poisonings, but police insist that is not true.

The Sunday Mail's sister paper the Herald said in a front-page editorial comment on Wednesday that the arrest of the journalists was "an over-reaction that implies that the police have something to hide."

The reporters were granted $100 bail.

ZIMBABWE: 22 More Elephants Killed In Hwange Park By Cyanide Poisoning

An elephant crosses the road in Hwange National Park, about 700 kilometers south west of Harare, Zimbabwe. Cyanide poisoning has killed 22 elephants in Zimbabwe’s Hwange National Park, the Zimbabwe National Parks and Wildlife Management Authority said.

This brings to 62 the number of elephants poisoned by poachers in this southern Africa country in October.

Cyanide poisoning has killed 22 elephants in Zimbabwe's Hwange National Park, the Zimbabwe National Parks and Wildlife Management Authority said on Monday. This brings to 62 the number of elephants poisoned by poachers in this southern Africa country in October.

Rangers found the carcasses of the elephants in Hwange park's Sinamatella area on Monday morning, national parks spokeswoman Caroline Washaya-Moyo said.

"Again, it is cyanide poisoning," said Washaya-Moyo, who said the poachers got away with three ivory tusks.

"We are now trying to check how many elephants had fully developed tusks because babies are among those killed," she said. "The rate at which we are losing animals to cyanide is alarming. Many other species are also dying from the cyanide used by poachers to target elephants. We are appealing to people in communities close to national parks to cooperate with authorities."

In early October, the parks reported three incidents in which 40 elephants were killed by cyanide poisoning. Three were killed in the Kariba area of cyanide put in oranges. The rest were killed in Hwange park.

In 2013, more than 200 elephants died from cyanide poisoning in Hwange. Washaya-Moyo said the parks agency is hoping that trained dogs from South Africa and the deployment of drones will help tighten monitoring of the vast park in the west of this wildlife-rich country.

On Monday, the national parks also announced that over the weekend authorities at Harare International Airport seized 173 kilograms (380 pounds) of ivory worth $43,250 that was about to be smuggled to Singapore. Three Zimbabweans and a Malian national were arrested over the smuggling bid, the parks agency said in a statement.

ZIMBABWE: Zimbabwe Drops Case Against US Dentist Walter Palmer

Protesters lambasted Walter Palmer outside his dental clinic after he came out from hiding.Below DR.Walter Palmer, the dentist who killed Ceil the lion

Zimbabwe has abandoned its bid to press charges against the US dentist who killed Cecil the lion, saying his papers "were in order" and he did not know he was committing an offence.

The lion was shot dead with a bow and arrow in July by a US trophy hunter called Walter Palmer in a hunt that provoked worldwide outrage.

Mr Palmer paid $US55,000 ($75,000) to shoot the lion on an expedition led by professional Zimbabwean hunter Theo Bronkhorst.

The hunt provoked a storm of criticism after it emerged that Cecil was a well-known attraction among visitors to the Hwange National Park and was wearing a tracking collar as part of an Oxford University research project.

But a minister said Zimbabwe would drop its bid to have Mr Palmer brought to justice because at the time of the hunt he was carrying all the right papers.

"Palmer came to Zimbabwe because his papers were in order," environment minister Oppah Muchinguri said.

"The documents were there... the problem now remains internal.

"We are now going to review how we issue hunting quotas."

The dentist was welcome to return to Zimbabwe but "not for hunting", she said.

Mr Palmer, an experienced trophy hunter, was hounded on social media over the killing, and after demonstrations outside his dental practice in Minnesota, he went into hiding for weeks.

He later apologised for killing Cecil, a 13-year-old male renowned for his distinctive black mane.

Mr Palmer said he believed it was legal hunt and appeared to blame Mr Bronkhorst for misleading him.

The minister said Honest Ndlovu, the local landowner, did not have a hunting quota for a lion but that the rural district council covering the land did.

Mr Bronkhorst has been charged with "failing to prevent an illegal hunt" and is due back in court on Thursday when the judge is due to decide on his application to have the case against him thrown out.

He has always denied any wrongdoing, saying he had obtained all the permits required to kill an elderly lion that was outside the national park boundaries.

ZIMBABWE: Fourteen Elephants Poisoned All Killed With Cyanide

Fourteen elephants were poisoned by cyanide in Zimbabwe in three separate incidents, two years after poachers killed more than 200 elephants by poisoning, Zimbabwe’s National Parks and Wildlife Management Authority said Tuesday.

Three elephants were killed in Matusadona National Park in the Kariba area in northern Zimbabwe and 11 more pachyderms were found dead in two different spots in Hwange National Park in western Zimbabwe over the past two weeks.

In all cases the elephants were killed by cyanide, according to kidney and liver samples from the dead elephants tested by the Biological Sciences Department, said a parks spokeswoman.

Six elephants were found dead with their tusks removed in Hwange National Park, 600 kilometers (372 miles) west of the capital, Harare, authorities said on Tuesday.

After discovering the first group of bodies on September 26, the rangers also came across five more elephant carcasses less than a week later. The dead animals still had their tusks, suggesting that the alleged poachers were disrupted.

Poisoned oranges
In a separate incident, the authorities in Matusadona National Park also found three dead elephants whose kidney and liver samples tested positive for cyanide.

In all three cases, the suspected poachers spiked food with cyanide, leaving poisoned oranges, maize cobs and salt sticks as bait for the pachyderms, said Caroline Washaya-Moyo, spokeswoman for Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority.

"No arrests have been made in all the cases and investigations are still in progress," she added.

The Matusadona Anti-Poaching Project, a private organization, offered $400 for information leading to arrest and conviction of the poisoners.

Cyanide is a commonly used chemical in Zimbabwean mining industry and is therefore easy to obtain.

Poaching on the rise
The Hwange National Park first captured headlines in July this year, after an American dentist killed its most famous animal, Cecil the lion. Despite the international outrage, poaching in western Zimbabwe remains a serious concern.

"We have had a number of poaching activities in the province, they are actually increasing each day," said Clement Munoriarwa, police commander for Mashonaland West province, on state television.

Smuggling a python skin
Traditionally, poachers in the African country have used firearms and traps to get ivory. This changed in 2013, after a group of poachers laced salt pans with cyanide targeting the elephants in Hwange.

Hundreds of elephants have died in the incident, conservation activists claim, although the official figures are much lower.

On Tuesday, authorities arrested a Zambian who was allegedly trying to smuggle 25 kilograms (55 pounds) of ivory from Zimbabwe to South Africa. The ivory would reach $6,320 (5,600 euros) on the South African market.

The Zambian was also carrying a 3 meter (10 feet) python skin, national parks spokeswoman Washaya-Moyo said.

ZIMBABWE: Police Arrest Cecil Hunter Over Sable Antelope Smuggling

Theo Bronkhorst.

Police in Zimbabwe have arrested Theo Bronkhorst, the professional hunter behind the killing of Cecil the lion, following the discovery of 29 sable antelope allegedly being smuggled to South Africa, his lawyer said on Tuesday.

Advocate Perpetua Dube said: He’s been arrested. He’s detained at Hillside Police station.

Bronkhorst was arrested on Monday but charges against him are yet to be clarified, Dube said in a telephone interview from Bulawayo.

The police from Beitbridge will determine that when he will be brought to court. I haven’t had a meeting with them. They were on their way last night, she added.

Separate reports say that the professional hunter is under suspicion for illegally importing 29 sables from Zambia.

Conservation group the Bhejane Trust confirmed the sable were found in three 4x4 trucks that were trying to illegally cross the South African border near Beitbridge at the weekend.

Three South African men, all in their forties, are being held for trying to illegally export the animals.

Two of the animals had already died by the time the trucks were intercepted, the Bhejane Trust said.

It claimed the sables were originally imported from Zambia. The Zimbabwean import papers could be dodgy, the group added.

Officials from the Bhejane Trust, which operates in the Victoria Falls and Hwange area, were not available for comment early on Tuesday. According to the trust, the animals had been kept in a boma on a farm Bronkhorst was living on outside Victoria Falls.

Bronkhorst is already due back in court at the end of the month for his part in the killing of Zimbabwe's most famous lion in early July in Hwange National Park.

Bronkhorst's client was US dentist Walter Palmer, who insists he believed the hunt - first with a bow and arrow and then with a gun - was legal. Palmer was a focus of global hatred when outrage over the 13-year-old lion's killing was at its peak at the beginning of August.

Invent Africa Safaris said in a post to Facebook: "The trucks got stuck in thick sand about 21 kilometres west of Beitbridge while attempting to cross the Limpopo River illegally, and were then confiscated by Zimbabwean police.

"The sable, thought to be of the sub-species kirkii, which typically have longer horns than their southern cousins, may well be part of a larger consignment South African breeders and hunters have been trying to smuggle out of Zambia since 2009."

Bronkhorst will appear in court on September 28 in connection with the Cecil case. Though the Zimbabwe authorities earlier indicated their desire to extradite dentist Palmer, they now seem to have abandoned the idea.

ZIMBABWE: Zimbabweans Bemused By Cecil The Lion’s Global Celebrity

As the global brouhaha over the death of Cecil the lion refuses to die down, many Zimbabweans’ reactions to the beast’s death has shifted from indifference to bemusement.

With many economic and social ills, the attention Cecil has been receiving since his death is considered by many to be an unnecessary sideshow and takes the limelight away from more pressing problems.

Cecil, referred to as Zimbabwe’s most popular lion, was killed at the beginning of July, but it took the best part of three weeks for the Zimbabwean media to report on the death, all but rubbishing claims of the lion’s popularity.

“The manner in which the story has been represented by international media seems somewhat far-fetched from the lived realities of most of the people,” blogger and law professor Alex Magaisa wrote on his blog.

While the global media reacted with outrage to the death, bemused Zimbabweans soon took to social media, creating memes of animals like zebra celebrating the death of the famous lion, saying the jungle would be more peaceful following Cecil’s death.

Activists argued that there were more pressing issues to worry about, than what they believed was an obscure lion.

Itai Dzamara, an anti-government activist has been missing for more than 150 days, with suspicions he may have been kidnapped by state agents. His fate remains unknown.

The activist’s brother, Partson, accused the international media and some Zimbabweans of wasting time on “trivia” as Cecil’s story eclipsed Mr Dzamara’s disappearance.

“The killing of Cecil the lion was bad,” Partson lashed out on Facebook. “However, I am shocked how most of us have suddenly become ‘animal activists’ as we romance trivia.

“If we could all become this vocal when it comes to real issues such as the abduction of Itai Dzamara…I am sure our nation will be better. This is tomfoolery and it’s making me sick.”

Former Education minister David Coltart, a vocal critic of President Robert Mugabe, also took to social media to express shock at the way Cecil’s death had overshadowed human rights issues in Zimbabwe.

“As much as I sympathise with those upset by this incident, this is just ridiculous,” he tweeted, making reference to Mr Dzamara’s disappearance and Zimbabwe’s history of disputed elections.

“The world’s anger at hunter (Dr) Walter Palmer is understandable but misplaced,” Mr Coltart added.
Extradition demand

A number of Zimbabweans on social media also felt that the killing of the lion, previously unknown to most people except foreign tourists, paled in comparison to the multiple crises facing the southern African country.

“At the root of this matter is the lawlessness brought about by Zanu PF’s abrogation of the rule of law in Zimbabwe,” Mr Coltart said.

“Cecil is but one of thousands of animals slaughtered since the year 2000 as a result of Zanu PF’s disastrous land invasions and the shocking under-funding of national parks.

“That the minister responsible for parks should now adopt such a “principled” stance is hypocrisy of the worst order,” the outspoken former Education minister added.

Environment minister Oppah Muchinguri last Friday issued a statement demanding the extradition of Walter Palmer, the American dentist who admitted killing Cecil.

Dr Palmer said he believed the hunt was legal.

Journalist Desmond Kumbuka lamented that the focus on Cecil’s death was a wasted opportunity for the world media to expose the real problems facing ordinary Zimbabweans.

“Enough time and cyberspace have been wasted on the millions of words said about a creature that neither speaks, understands nor shares the emotions of its benefactors,” Mr Kumbura posted on Facebook.

“A visit to any of the country’s cemeteries on any day will confirm the toll of the current crisis.

“Multitudes can no longer afford basic health care, struck by afflictions like stroke, although ordinarily controllable, can mean certain death.

“It’s too much of an unhealthy situation for humans for us to worry about the death of some lion called Cecil.”

Judging from social media reactions to Cecil’s death, most Zimbabweans have too much on their plate to worry about a dead lion.

Just last week, Finance minister Patrick Chinamasa announced that Zimbabwe’s gross domestic product (GDP) will only grow by 1.5 per cent, hardly uplifting news for the depressed economy.

Recently the country’s Supreme Court relaxed labour laws, making it easy for employers to fire employees; just three weeks later 12,000 workers had lost their jobs.

It is estimated that at least 85 per cent of the country’s population is unemployed and with the latest ruling more are set to be jobless.
Donations pour in

Cathy Buckle, a prominent blogger in Zimbabwe, said Cecil‘s slaying could help bring back attention to the country’s worsening economic and political problems.

“The painful reality is that all this suffering, by people and animals, goes on largely unnoticed by a leadership in Zimbabwe which is obsessed with itself, mired in greed, corruption, opulence and power struggles,” she wrote.

“Cecil’ the lion, 24 baby elephants, four million Zimbabweans in the Diaspora, 8 million Zimbabweans at home: we are all the same in that we are totally dependent on a morally bankrupt leadership.

“Cecil the lion has put Zimbabwe back in the world spotlight and for that we are grateful because we have endured so much, for so long.”

However, Canada-based commentator Kuthula Matshazi believes Zimbabweans are missing the point by taking umbrage at the way the world media has focused on Cecil’s tragic death.

He said Dr Palmer had to be brought to justice as a way of bringing back the rule of law in Zimbabwe, which he said would benefit the wider economy.

“Poaching is endemic in Zimbabwe. The rule of law has to be upheld considering the manner Dr Palmer poached the lion,” he said.

“We should not ignore the flagrant disregard of law otherwise we fail to enforce our constitutional duty and set a dangerous precedence.”

Mr Matshazi said the hunting industry was subject to regulation, and a violation of the rules should alarm everyone.

“Like all industries, the hunting industry is subject to regulation. Failure to enforce the law will lead to escalated illegal hunting schemes depleting our social and economic resources – the animals,” he said.

“Secondly, wildlife management is a significant activity within the tourism sector. For instance, our game parks attract visitors, bring in foreign currency and investment, and sustain jobs.”

The outpouring of anger over the manner Cecil was killed has been a double-edged sword for Zimbabwe’s tourism industry, with a ban on bow hunting around the Hwange National Park likely to hit hard the thriving safari hunting sector.

Operators say hunters have already started cancelling trips and this could spell doom for over 700 game scouts employed in the industry.

On the other hand, the stories about the lion’s death have seen donors stampeding to donate towards conservation efforts that have received little government funding over the years.

According to UK’s Guardian newspaper, the death of Cecil the Lion had sparked donations of more than £500,000 to Oxford University’s Wildlife Conservation Research Unit (WildCRU), who set up an appeal to fund future lion research work.

Cecil the lion was being studied by WildCRU , which runs a project at the Hwange National Park.

ZIMBABWE: Lion Kills Guide In Hwange National Park

A safari guide was killed by a lion in Hwange National Park in Zimbabwe, the same wildlife reserve where the famous Cecil the Lion was lured to his death by a Minnesota dentist a few weeks ago.

The Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Authority confirmed that Quinn Swales, a 40-year old safari guide based at Main Camp in Hwange National Park, was attacked by one of six lions that Swales and his group of six tourists had approached. Swales was leading a walking safari.

The attack took place Aug. 24. Swales died of his injuries the same day.

According to reports, Swales and his group approached a pride of lions, two males, two females and two cubs. The lions became nervous and hostile. At first, Swales managed to scare them away, but one of them came back and attacked Swales.

One of the lions, named Nxaha, was collared and being studied by researchers, as had been Cecil the Lion. According to the wildlife authority, Nxaha was the lion that attacked Swales.

According to Camp Hwange’s Facebook page, after the group of people came upon the lions, one of the adult males started walking toward the group. Quinn told his guests to get behind him, and they all started shouting to intimidate the lion and convince it to retreat. The lion stopped and watched them. Swales set off a “bear banger” to scare off the lion and the lion moved away. But then it suddenly turned and attacked Swales. The attack came too fast for Swales to use his rifle.

Swales was thrown to the ground and bitten in his shoulder and neck. The guests shouted and successfully drove the lion from Swales. Emergency first aid was performed but Swales died at the scene. The guests used the handheld radio to call the camp for assistance.

David Carson, the general manager of Camp Hwange, issued a statement saying, “Only praise and admiration can be given to Quinn in the professional way he unflinchingly faced the charging lion, thus ensuring that he protected the clients, all of whom were unharmed in any way. He paid the ultimate price in pursuit of a job he loved, in an area he knew so well. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family, colleagues and friends at this sad time. It would be appreciated if the family be given the privacy to mourn the loss of a fine man.”