Villagers in ward 16, Dombodema, Bulilima district in Matabeleland South are losing livestocks to hyenas that are preying domestic animals in the area.
Ward 16 councillor Fortune Dube told Southern Eye that they suspect the hyena’s could be coming from Botswana since their area is located near the Zimbabwe-Botswana border.
“Our goats are being attacked at night by the hyenas. We suspect that the wild animals are coming from Mapouka which is an area on the Botswana side. They started terrorising us in January by breaking into our kraals. At times they kill three goats per night at one homestead,’’ Dube said.
He said the owner would see blood and try to trace it and find remains of the goats in the bush.
“This happens in homesteads where there are no dogs. My neighbour has since lost five goats, twice with the latest being last week. Another one also lost three goats recently,’’ he said
Dube noted that jackals are also giving villagers a headache, adding that they were waiting for a response after reporting the matter to council.
“We have reported the cases to council according to the procedure which stipulates that we should go to council first then they will forward the report to the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority.
Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority spokesperson Tinashe Farawo said he had checked with the officers on the ground, adding that they had not received such a report. He urged communities to report to the local authorities.
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“If we receive a report we will react within the shortest possible time so that we help our communities,” Farawo said.
