Hwange National Park
| Hwange National Park | |
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IUCN category II (national park)
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| Location | Matabeleland North, Zimbabwe |
| Nearest city | Hwange |
| Coordinates | 18°44′06″S 26°57′18″E / 18.735°S 26.955°ECoordinates: 18°44′06″S 26°57′18″E / 18.735°S 26.955°E |
| Area | 14,651 km2 (5,657 sq mi) |
| Established | 1928 as a Game Reserve (1961 as a National Park) |
| Governing body | Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority |
Hwange National Park (formerly Wankie Game Reserve) is the largest game reserve in Zimbabwe. The park lies in the west, on the main road between Bulawayo and the widely noted Victoria Falls and near to Dete.
It was founded in 1928, with the first warden being by the 22-year-old Ted Davison. He befriended the Manchester-born James Jones who was the stationmaster for the then Rhodesian Railways at Dete which is very near Hwange Main Camp. Jones managed incoming supplies for the park.
This park is considered for inclusion in the 5 Nation Kavango - Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area.
In 2011, nine elephants, five lions and two buffalos were also killed by poachers.
In October 2013 it was discovered that poachers killed a large number of African elephants with cyanide after poisoning their waterhole. Conservationists have claimed the incident to be the highest massacre of animals in Southern Africa in 25 years. Two aerial surveys were carried to determine the extent of the deaths, and 19 carcasses were identified in the first survey and a further 84 carcasses in the second survey. Three of the poachers were caught, arrested, tried, convicted and sentenced. All royal game and elephant poaching offences now have a mandatory 9-year sentence and the supply chain is also targeted – with a man arrested on 21 October trying to smuggle raw ivory out.
On or about July 1, 2015, Cecil, a lion who had lived on Hwange National Park for 13 years, was illegally killed. This action spurred widespread social media coverage and a petition calling for Zimbabwe's president Robert Mugabe to outlaw big game hunting permits. Dr. Walter Palmer, the admitted killer of Cecil, had a permit and was not charged with any crime, as all his papers were in order. Authorities in Zimbabwe have said he is free to visit the country. The complicity of corrupt Zimbabwean officials with poachers is claimed. But, Theo Bronkhorst, the unlicensed guide in charge of the Cecil killing is presently on bail awaiting several trials. One trial for the killing of Cecil, where he is charged with “failing to prevent an illegal hunt,” and at least one other trial for other wildlife crimes.
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Wikipedia