HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) — Growing pressure from poaching and human encroachment in Zimbabwe has driven hundreds of elephants to migrate from the country and at least one leopard to stalk an upmarket Harare suburb, conservationists said Monday. The independent Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force appealed in its latest monthly bulletin for more action — and money — to preserve the troubled nation’s wildlife. In Zimbabwe’s economic meltdown, “humans are encroaching more and more into areas previously reserved for wildlife,” the task force said. As many as 400 elephants have crossed the Zambezi River, which separates Zambia from northern Zimbabwe, in recent months, said Johnny Rodrigues, head of the task force.
Elephant exodus reported from troubled Zimbabwe
April 26, 2009