Zimbabwe has issued permits to cull at least 50 elephants in the Save Valley Conservancy, where the population is three times what the habitat can support, authorities said Tuesday.
The Save Valley Conservancy in southern Zimbabwe has around 2,550 elephants, but the area’s carrying capacity is just 800, according to the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority.
The conservancy has already relocated 200 elephants over the past five years to other reserves to help manage the growing population.
Meat from the culled elephants will be distributed to local communities, while their ivory will go to the parks authority.
Zimbabwe, home to one of the world’s largest elephant populations, has seen rising human-wildlife conflict as climate change worsens droughts, forcing elephants to encroach on villages in search of food and water.
Last year, Zimbabwe authorized the cull of around 200 elephants, its first since 1988. Authorities said the meat was given to communities struggling with drought, following a similar move by neighboring Namibia.
