MUYAKO – Five hippos have died over the past few days due to the prevailing drought in the Zambezi region.
“We have been fortunate that since the beginning of this drought, we have only recorded these five mortalities that are here at Ikuzu, thanks to the efforts we put in place, and those of other stakeholders such as the Botswana authorities,” environment and tourism spokesperson Romeo Muyunda said on Tuesday at the site of the stranded hippos.
The deaths have been a blessing in disguise, as nearby communities have been feasting on the carcasses.
He, however, cautioned residents to desist from consuming the meat until the ministry has determined the exact cause of death.
“We suspect Anthrax. Apart from that, there is little vegetation, so one cause could be starvation as hippos have nowhere to graze,” Muyunda said.
Due to lack of rainfall, most wildlife species such as hippos and elephants find themselves stranded, and are on the verge of starvation due to a lack of food and water. Assessing the situation, he confirmed the dire conditions of the stranded hippos at one of the three water streams at Ikuzu in the Muyako area of the Katima Mulilo Rural constituency.
Approximately 130 stranded hippos were fighting for territories, as they were forced to fight for the little water available in the ponds, which have been cut off from Lake Liambezi.
The lake does not only provide water for wildlife, but also to livestock and communal farmers for cultivation purposes.
However, all farming activities have come to a standstill as the water streams continue to dry up, leaving wildlife and livestock stranded.
He said this is the third case of hippos recorded stranded in eastern Zambezi.
The other hippos are stranded at Nsinde and Lukala.
“We have assessed the situation, and have put interventions in place to drill boreholes to rescue the stranded hippos. We are observing a better situation compared to Lukala when we initially intervened. The hippos are in a predicament, but it is manageable,” he assured.
He said the ministry is drilling a borehole at Ikuzu, where five hippos died, to pump water into the drying pond.
The ministry is hopeful the contractors will finish with the drilling process expeditiously to avoid further fatalities.