Zimbabwe’s wildlife authorities have found 22 elephants dead in the past two weeks.
They suspect that the cause of death of the endangered species is due to a bacterial infection.
Reported by AFP on Thursday (September 2, 2020) elephant carcasses were found on Tuesday and Wednesday near the northwest Pandamasuwe Forest.
The place where 12 elephants died two weeks earlier.
“We have taken samples for testing, but we suspect they died from the same cause as the 12 that were found dead last week,” park and wildlife authority spokesman Tinashe Farawo told AFP.
The laboratory results showed that the first 12 elephant carcasses had died due to bacterial infection.
Park authorities believe that the elephant, aged between two and six, ate the leaves from the treetops.
It is possible that the elephant had ingested the bacteria attached to the plant which was infected with the bacteria.
They ruled out the allegation that the elephant died from poaching, because the ivory was still attached to the elephant carcass.
Zimbabwe has more than 84,000 elephants.
Dozens of elephants have died from hunger and lack of water in recent years.
At least 300 elephants died from cyanide poisoning in a water hole in Hwange in 2013.
