There is a problem in Victoria Falls with elephants visiting the Municipal rubbish dump and ingesting plastic - bags etc which obviously smell good! Some elephant have died from ingestting too much plastic, The elephant then spread plastic litter all over the Park vias their dung. I sent in a team to clean up in the Chamabonda along the roads only and they recovered 4 bin bags full of plastic litter in a morning!

Bhejane Trust's photo.
Bhejane Trust's photo.
Bhejane Trust's photo.

On my way to Kazuma I noticed a Wahlbergs Eagle in a tree with a stick dangling down. When I got closer I noticed a string from the stick wrapped around the eagle. The eagle flew off when we tried to scale the tree it was in, but crash landed a short distance away, and we recovered it and removed the snare ( a Guinea Fowl snare). Roger Parry of Victoria Falls Wildlife Trust collected the eagle, gave it rehydrate and successfully released it. How the eagle got tangled I have no idea!

Bhejane Trust's photo.
Bhejane Trust's photo.
Bhejane Trust's photo.

Contact in the Panda Masuie Forest Area ( bordering Zambezi National Park) between two Forestry rangers and a police detail, and 5 Zambian poachers. The poachers got away and later crossed the Zambezi back into Zambia ahead of the pursuing Parks rangers, but they dropped 8 tusks which were recovered. At least they had no reward for their excursion!
The blankets wrapped around the tusks were shoulder pads.

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Two motorists approaching Victoria Falls from Kazungula had a shock when they came across hyena dragging a human body across the road in front of them! Parks reacted to the report, followed the drag marks for over a kilometre, and found the head and torso of a women outside the hyena's den - the rest of the body had been devoured. It turned out that the woman, a resident of the Falls, had a domestic dispute with her husband and hit him on the head with an axe. Thinking she had killed him (he survived), she fled into the nearby Park and committed suicide. The hyena then found the body and dragged it home!

Bhejane Trust is now involved in the operation of 28 borehole pumps servicing 25 waterholes on the Parks estates, between Zambezi, Kazuma Pan, Robins and Sinamatella. This is made up of 26 solar units, 1 windmill and one ZESA (mains power) and represents a saving of 14,000 litres of diesel per month had we still been reliant on the old Lister engines!!

Zambian Poaching Excursions into Zimbabwe - the Modus Operandii

Each Zambian poaching gang that is going to cross into Zimbabwe or Botswana has two core members – one has a heavy weapon ( a.375 or a .458) and his job is to shoot the elephant, while the second guy has an AK and his job is protection from the Parks rangers. It seems the weapons are issued in Lusaka, generally with 150 rounds of heavy ammunition and 150 rounds of AK ammunition. A gang of porters is then recru...ited from villagers either at the hunters home area or from the villages along the Zambezi – they are promised a cut of the sale of the ivory.
The team will then assemble at one of the villages on the Upper Zambezi, where they contract local mekoro polers to take them across the river. There are a couple of known villages which are favoured, Generally around the full moon these polers will then take the poaching group across the river, and drop them on the Zimbabwe bank. They are then on standby to recover the group back to Zambia when required, using cell phone contact. The poaching group then tries to get deep into the Matetsi areas or the old hunting concessions in Botswana where there is less chance of detection, and may stay there for two or three weeks – the porters carry the food and supplies in and the ivory out. Should the group be successful, the ivory is taken to Lusaka and sold – it appears to be to the persons who supply the weapons.
The Zambians will not cooperate with the Zimbabweans on curbing these poaching incursions – it obviously goes high up. t The poaching could be stopped instantly if there was the political willpower in Zambia to end it.

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There has just been a contact in the Zambezi National Park between a Parks patrol and a group of 10 Zambian poachers. The poachers had obviously crossed on the full moon and were making their way inland to poach elephant. The group comprised of one Zambian believed armed with a heavy weapon (375/458), one with an AK for protection, and 8 porters. The Parks patrol engaged them and shots were exchanged - Parks shot dead the poacher with the AK, and a porter - the rest of the group fled leaving everything behind including the AK, 100kg of mealie meal and personal items. They had only just entered Zimbabwe so had not shot any elephant yet.
Well done to Parks - a fantastic effort!

Melusi Moyo arrested in Tsholotsho Communal land ( bordering Hwange National Park), yesterday with four tusks weighing 13,5kg which came from the Park. Cause of death of elephant (2 bulls) unknown. He was heading to Bulawayo to try and find a buyer when arrested. Was sentenced to 10 years with labour today in Hwange magistrates court - quick justice!

Moses Masuku from Dete was arrested on 20th April in possession of a pangolin, which he had found in Binga district. He was sentenced on 24th April to nine years, and the pangolin was recovered and released into the Zambezi National Park. Masuku is also suspected of involvement in ivory and investigations continue.
Bhejane Trust, in conjunction with the SAVE The African Rhino Foundation, paid a reward for this successful recovery of the pangolin, and the subsequent conviction of Masuku. Congratulations to Parks and the law enforcement agencies for their quick conclusion of this case ( 4 days!!)

Some good news - Bhejane Trust has secured funding for 8 solar pumping units to be installed in the Robins area of Hwange - thanks to Beks Ndlovu of the Wildlife and Conservation Trust, and Dave Carsons of Camp Hwange. They will be installed within the next four weeks. Will keep postings as we go!

Tragic news from the Matopos where a well known young 8 year old rhino cow, Ntombi, was shot and wounded. The shots were heard on Tuesday last week but nothing was found after a search by parks. Only days later was the severely wounded Ntombi found, and had to be euthanised as the vet ruled there was no possibility of saving her - she had lived a week of indescribable agony! Ntombi had a 13 month calf ( her first) and we are following up on what has happened to this youngster. We have suspicions as to who the poachers were, and will be offering a substantial reward for any arrest in this case!

Bhejane Trust updated their profile picture.
April 7
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Bhejane Trust has installed a new solar pump unit at Deteema Dam in the Robins area of Hwange National Park. This unit is a hybrid i.e. comes with a generator backup for night time pumping when the pressure is on later in the year. Many thanks to Michel Buenerd and Le Pic Vert of France for this donation, which will go a long way to alleviate pressure in the area.
This is the start of our game water program in Robins. Thanks to Area Manager Dzoro for his assistance.

Bhejane Trust's photo.
Bhejane Trust's photo.

The statement issued by National Parks on the tragic incident:

ZIMBABWE PARKS AND WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT AUTHORITY,PRESS STAMENT ON THE TRAGIC SHOOTING ACCIDENT, MANA-POOLS.
PARKS LOGO-HIGH RESOLUTION 2012
Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority, the Board Chairman Mr Tichafa Mundangepfupfu and Director General, Mr Edson Chidziya regret to announce the accidental and tragic incident which caused the death of two males, Mr Claudio Ch...iarelli and Mr Max Chiarelli members of the Zambezi Society collaborating with Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority on wildlife conservation .

Over the past two days gun shots were heard in the Mana Pools area which led to the pair assisting the Authority with anti-poaching deployments. On the fateful late Sunday afternoon, 13 March 2016, rangers who had since been on deployment pursuing the spoor of suspected poachers and were due for uplift came across a fresh fire place in dense vegetation, which they suspected to have been used by poachers. The rangers continued following the spoor of the poachers, they later saw movement in the thicket, heard voices and opened fire, accidentally shooting and killing the pair on the spot.
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Unbeknown to them these were fresh deployments who had come to replace the rangers and had stopped to attend to a mechanical problem on their vehicle.
In the meantime investigations are underway.

National Parks Public Relations Dept.

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We at Bhejane Trust would like to express our deepest sympathies to the family of Claudio Chiarelli and his son Max, tragically killed in a shooting accident at Mana Pools while assisting Parks on anti-poaching operations. They were voluntarily putting in their time and resources to assist Parks in controlling the poaching scourge, and paid the ultimate price in their dedication to conservation. We salute Claudio and Max. RIP

A photo sent to me of tigerfish for sale in a supermarket in Hwange. I do not know where the tigerfish came from and whether legally fished or not, but the fish are clearly undersized and catching these immature tigerfish can only be depleting the natural stock, either in the Zambezi or in Kariba. I think it is highly irresponsible ( possibly illegal) for a supermarket to be involved in and supporting the depletion of our natural heritage. We have asked the authorities to investigate the source of these tigerfish

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300 meters of net pulled out of the Zambezi River in the Zambezi National Park by a local fisherman, Joe Rainsford, in a boat. Zambian fish poachers escaped inland - Parks and VFAPU reacting and have deployed. Joe also assisted Parks to pull out nearly 3km of Zambian nets in the Kazungula sector of the river a couple of weeks ago. It is great to see how everyone is pulling together with Parks in the Victoria Falls area to fight the scourge of poaching!

Zambian poacher killed in the Matetsi area yesterday. Two shots were reported early yesterday morning, and Parks immediately reacted, deploying patrol sticks in the area. Two more shots were then heard, and a stick going to investigate found a dead elephant still with the tusks. They showed great presence by going into ambush, and three Zambians showed up. They killed the gunner, but the other two escaped. Recovered was the body, a .375 rifle, 13 rounds and two cell phones. It appears this is the hit and run type tactic now used by the Zambians, where they come in small groups, shoot an elephant, cut out the ivory and head straight back to the river. The two cell phones give invaluable information and will have all their contacts in them, though the Zambian authorities will as usual do nothing!

Elephant tragedies in the Zambezi National Park. I found a young bull that had died a day or two earlier. It had obviously been with a big herd, and had for some unknown reason fallen on one side and could not get up - can only assume a broken leg. The herd had not been disturbed judging by the signs, so do not think poaching. In a desperate attempt to get up the elephant had spun round and round and dug a hole in the Kalahari sand, pushing out a sand bank evenly all the way ...around the edge, before eventually secumbing. Obviously a slow, terrible death!
The second elephant depicted is from a Zambian poacher -in a hit and run tactic of crossing the Zambezi late evening ( I assume watching for elephant coming to drink), following and shooting an elephant at night and safely back in Zambia early next morning! Unusually the Zambians had taken meat and a skin panel, but this appears to be the work of a known poacher who has shot hippo and buffalo for meat before - he might now be going into ivory! He would be very easy to apprehend if we could find such a thing as an honest policeman in Zambia!!

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Bhejane Trust's photo.
Bhejane Trust's photo.