By A Correspondent

A US$2,000 reward is being offered by the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks) for information that leads to the arrest of the individuals involved in the recent poaching of three lions in Hwange National Park.

On Tuesday, ZimParks rangers discovered the carcasses of the lions at Nyamandlovu Pan, near Hwange Main Camp. The bodies had been mutilated, with their heads and paws removed.

Tinashe Farawo, a spokesman for ZimParks, confirmed the reward and promised that all information would be kept strictly confidential. If you have any leads, you can reach him at 0772433901.

The “Big Five” of Africa—lions, elephants, rhinos, leopards, and buffaloes—are known to reside in Hwange National Park.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) reports that the number of wild African lions worldwide has drastically decreased, from an estimated 200,000 at the beginning of the last century to an estimated 23,000 today.

The estimated number of lions in Zimbabwe is approximately 2,000.