ZimParks Deny Eland Poaching At Sanctuary

The Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks), has denied any claim of poaching going on at the Chimanimani Eland Sanctuary, saying that no Eland has been poached within the sanctuary.

This comes after locals and and tourists claimed that they were seeing less and less of the endangered animal in the area.

However ZimParks said that the animals have been ‘frequently’ sighted by the park rangers and that the claims of the Elands being ‘completely wiped out’ is false.

A man from Harare, who recently visited the sanctuary with is family to see the animals, said that he was disappointed in not being able to see the antelope, as this was the reason for the visit.

He also said that he got a flimsy excuse from the park rangers as to why no Elands were spotted:

“…[sic] I really wanted my family to see these huge and beautiful animals whose grace fascinated me growing up in this area…All I got away with was an excuse by Parks officials but locals say there is nothing anymore,” he told reporters.

However, ZimParks furthermore released a statement, insisting that the animal is spotted frequently. They also said that they are aware that poaching is a problem in the country and that there are a number of animals in danger because of poaching:

“…Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority can confirm that the following wildlife is frequently sighted in Chimanimani — zebra, wildebeest and eland while the bushbuck is the most frequently sighted…Indeed the wildlife populations have decreased since the 80s due to a fence that broke and has seen wildlife straying into hostile areas. Poaching has been a contributory factor…[the] rangers on the ground have been receiving continuous training to counter the poaching menace in the area,” the statement by PR manager, Caroline Washaya-Moyo, read.