Zimbabwe’s elephants in the Zambezi Valley have declined dramatically, The Zambezi Society, a non-profit, non-governmental organisation, has revealed, through an aerial survey.
Aerial surveys conducted by experts as part of the 2014 Africa-wide Great Elephant Census, revealed a 75% decline in the numbers of elephant in the Sebungwe area of the Zambezi Valley, south of Lake Kariba, and a 40% decline in elephant numbers in the Middle Zambezi Valley, near Mana Pools.
Elephant numbers in the Sebungwe area decreased from 14 000 in 2001 to 3 500 in 2014 and elephant numbers in the Middle Zambezi Valley, including Mana Pools, decreased from 18 000 in 2001 to 11 500 in 2014.
"The Zambezi Valley has lost around 17 000 elephants since 2001. The Zambezi Society, along with other concerned non-governmental organisations is determined to draw the World's attention to these census results. We will work together with the Zimbabwe National Parks Authority to combat this slaughter. But to do this, we need some serious international funding support. The Zambezi Valley's elephants are a global asset and an international tourism attraction. They need help before it's too late," says Sally Wynn-Pitman, a spokesperson for the Zambezi Society.
The Zambezi Society says the drop in the elephant population is evident in the drier, marginal lands surrounding Zimbabwe’s National Parks and Safari Area, where proximity to human populations creates an increasing threat.
The decreased in elephant numbers in the Zambezi area is a result of poaching due to the deterioration of the economy in Zimbabwe and the increased demand for ivory in China and the East, according to The Zambezi Society.
The Zambezi Society said experts have also noticed a huge escalation in the demand and price of elephant tusks in China since 2002.
Similar surveys in Tanzania and Mozambique, conducted in 2014, revealed a 60% and 50% loss in elephant populations in those two countries respectively, adds the Zambezi Society.
Adam Cruise, a published travel writer specialising in environmental ethics, also noted that Zimbabwe is facing a collapse between 40% and 75% in the number of its elephants, specifically in the northern sector of the country.
