Zimbabwe probes mysterious death of 11 elephants a month after Botswana saw 275 carcasses

Zimbabwe authorities are carrying on an investigation on the suspicious death of 11 elephants in a forest situated to the west of the country. According to reports, the investigators have ruled out cyanide poisoning and poaching as a probable cause of the tragic deaths.

The dead bodies of the elephants were discovered with the tusks intact on Friday in the Pandamasue forest, which is located between Hwange national park and Victoria Falls.

READ: Botswana: Hundreds Of Elephants Drop Dead, Scientists Call It ‘conservation Disaster’

Tests conducted to determine deaths

A spokesman for the Zimbabwe National Parks and Wildlife Management Authority Tinashe Farawo is reported to have said that blood samples have been sent to the laboratory for further analysis to determine the cause of their deaths. 

As per the reports, the tusks on the carcasses rule out poaching. There have been earlier reports of poachers in Zimbabwe poisoning dozens of elephants for tusks in pursuit of illegal ivory. 

“We can only ascertain the cause of death after the tests. But we have ruled out cyanide poisoning,” Farawo told Associated Press. “Only elephants were affected. No vultures or any other animals were affected.”

READ: Number Of Elephants In Uttar Pradesh Increased To 352 From 232 In Three Years: Census

In a similar incident in recent months, over 275 elephants were found dead in Botswana under mysterious circumstances. According to the reports, the scientists have named the mysterious circumstance a ‘conservation disaster’. The first cluster contained around  165 carcasses of dead elephants which were reported back in May. A UK based conservationist was reported to have said that a mass die-off is very rare and added that without a drought-like situation, a die-off like this one has not been so significant. 

Botswana has the world’s largest elephant population, estimated at 156,000, and Zimbabwe the second largest, estimated at 85,000. Last year, about 200 elephants in Zimbabwe died of starvation as a result of a drought.

(With AP inputs)

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