Zimbabwean authorities are moving young elephants from Hwange National Park to Chizarira National Park in a bid to boost the herd at Binga, a fishing resort town within the park in the northwest of Zimbabwe. Binga is one of the prime tourism spots in the country.

Officials at the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks) said the elephants were being moved to the smaller park because of the drought in Hwange. Reportedly there are more than 45 000 elephants in Hwange, which has a carrying capacity of about 18 000.  ZimParks spokesperson, Caroline Washaya-Moyo, said it was also hoped that the relocation would boost the elephant population of Chizarira, which has declined as a result of poaching.

She said the movement of the elephants started about three weeks ago, however, ZimParks had first relocated elephants between the two parks in August and had monitored how they adapted to the new environment.

According to ZimParks Wildlife Manager and Ecologist, Ray Makwehe, capturing one elephant costs about $2,000 and involves mobilising fuel and manpower and ensuring there are holding camps at the destination.

Hwange National Park relies on artificial pumping of borehole water for wildlife consumption while Chizarira uses natural sources of water. Makwehe said there was too much pressure on Hwange’s water resources as a result of the large elephant population, as one animal drank more than 200 litres a day.