/ 15 June 2000

MOZ ELEPHANTS TREK TO MALAWI

SOME 600 elephants from Mozambique have trooped into a Malawi national park, doubling the elephant population. Aggrey Dzimbiri, manager of Liwonde national park in southern Machinga district, bordering Mozambique, said he suspects the elephants were fleeing from Mozambique because the vegetation there had been destroyed by the recent floods. Dzimbiri, who looks after the 538-square-kilometre park which is also home to black rhinos and a favourite tourist spot, said Malawi was worried because the larger elephant population would completely destroy the vegetation. Malawi, at the last count in 1989 had about 2000 elephants spread across six national parks.