De Beers to move 200 elephants from South Africa to Mozambique
JOHANNESBURG – Diamond producer De Beers said on Monday it was
relocating 200 elephants from its private reserve in South Africa to
neighbouring Mozambique, part of wider efforts to restore wildlife populations
ravaged by conflict there.
The Anglo American unit said its 32 000 ha Venetia Limpopo
Nature Reserve could support around 60 elephants but now had 270, causing
"extensive damage to an ecosystem that must sustain a diverse wildlife
population."
The world's largest land mammals have a jumbo-sized impact on
their terrain and in many South African parks, which are fenced to contain
them, populations have reached levels where the vegetation cannot support their
numbers.
De Beers said the elephants would be moved 1 500 km to
Mozambique's Zinave National Park, which has over 400 000 ha and an elephant
population of only 60.
Mozambique's wildlife numbers were badly hit by a 15-year civil
war that ended in 1992. In more recent years, its remaining elephant
populations have been targeted by ivory poachers.
The operation is being conducted with the Peace Parks Foundation
(PPF) conservation group, and De Beers said it was providing it with $500 000
to support anti-poaching efforts.
"Ecosystems require a range of fauna and flora to stay
balanced. If you remove one species, such as elephant, it has a ripple effect
on the whole system," said Werner Myburgh, the chief executive of
the PPF.
"The reintroduction of elephants to Mozambique will bring
us one step closer to achieving our dream of restoring the landscape."
Elephants are extremely social animals and family groups will be
kept together for the translocation, a huge logistical undertaking that will
include darting operations and the movement of tranquilised animals over long
distances by road.
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