The ManicaPost
Sharon Chigeza Post Reporter
RAMPAGING hippopotamuses have disrupted fishing activities and destroyed crops belonging to communal farmers near Zonwe River in Burma Valley, Mutare over the past week.
In a case of suspected migration from Mozambique to Burma Valley, villagers cannot help but live in perpetual fear of the worst and the anxiety of watching crops being destroyed by the beasts, stoking fears of an imminent human-wildlife conflict.
“Villagers noticed that something was destroying their maize crop over the past week and the style of destruction was obviously not that of cattle. The footprints seen in the fields pointed to the presence of hippos but nobody had seen them physically.
“Judging from the scale of destruction, it is suspected that there may be two or three hippos that have encroached from Chicamba dam across the border,” said Wellington Masiyazi, an elderly villager and fisherman.
Masiyazi went on to relate how he spotted one of the hippos in Nahuni dam on Saturday afternoon after some rains.
“I had gone out to seek shelter from rain near the dam as I was on my weekly fishing expedition. Just a few minutes after the rain had cleared and was preparing my raft to go back fishing, a gush of water was blown into the air from the dam, an act identified with one of the characteristics of hippos.
“A few seconds later the animal emerged from the water with its mouth open wide, a spectacular view it was,” said Masiyazi.
Also witnessing the incident was a fellow villager and his young son who expressed excitement at the sight and beauty of the creature as well as fear of what it might do to them.
“Earlier in the day Masiyazi and his fellow fishermen had noticed huge holes in their fishing nets, which immediately dawned on him that it was the work of the hippos just after the encounter.
Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (Zimparks) spokesperson, Mr Tinashe Farawo said he had not received reports on the animals. He urged villagers to report stray wild animals to Parks and Wildlife Management Authority with urgency to avoid human- wildlife conflicts.
“We are mandated to respond to reports of wildlife attacks and encroachment in a matter of four days hence I encourage villagers to make reports to the responsible authority with urgency,” said Mr Farawo.
He also noted that it was not unusual to see hippopotamuses around areas habouring deep water bodies especially with the heavy rains that had been received in the province over the past weeks. The worst fears are for villagers settled around Nahuni dam, Burma Valley where the hippos are suspected to have found a habitat.
