By Rex Mphisa
PRFESSIONAL hunters roped in to find the elusive lions in the outskirts of Beitbridge town are baiting the big cats with the hope to catch them.
There is no intention to kill the lions but capture them and hopefully return them to Kruger National Park where they belong.
One of the lions was seen near Mawale Hills also known as The Woman’s Breast on Monday but it disappeared into the thick bushes.
“Today professional hunters brought an impala to use as bait. They have their skill in that but I am informed they will use that to bait the lions,” said the officer commanding Beitbridge Police District Chief Superintendent Mesuli Ncube.
“The team led by the Department of Parks and Wildlife has Beitbridge Rural District Council Campfire Unit, the police from the Mineras, Flora and Fauna Unit, The Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (Zimra) Drone Pilots and professional hunters from Bubi Valley Conservancy,” he said.
On Monday the same team saw one of the lions but the thick vegetation following above normal rains gave the lion cover.
The lions which have caused reasonable panic across Beitbridge and much resources have been used to try and capture them.
Villagers around Beitbridge East areas are living in fear after the collared lions, together with their cubs, crossed the Zimbabwe–South Africa border and moved into areas used daily by local communities.
They, according to satelite images, are patrolling an area highly active in cross bordsr smuggling and their presence may have come in handy for officials.
But the lions, believed to have entered Zimbabwe through the Greater Limpopo Transfrontier Conservation Area (GLTFCA), are causing sleepless nights or villagers.
Authorities in Beitbridge last week issued an alert, urging residents in Tshitulipasi, Nuli and Mawale to be extremely cautious.
In a broadcast last week Beitbridge RDC chief executive officer Kiliboni Mbedzi confirmed the situation saying joint teams of rangers from Zimbabwe and South Africa have been deployed to track and capture the lions.
BBRDC chairman Oscar Chiromo, advised parents in the affected areas to keep school-going children at home where possible until the situation is brought under control.