Parque Nacional da Gorongosa Moçambique

Many of the Park's large herbivore populations were greatly reduced by years of war and poaching. However, almost all naturally occurring species-- including more than 400 kinds of birds and a wide variety of reptiles--have survived. With effective management and reintroductions of key species, wildlife populations will regain their natural numbers and help restore the park's ecological balance.

Reintroductions
Our highest priority is to reintroduce three bulk grazers--zebras, wildebeest, and buffalos--that used to maintain the vast grasslands in the Rift Valley. Bringing back those species will create better grazing habitat, increasing other herbivore populations and speeding the recovery of the Park's carnivores. The zebras (Chapman's race) will all come from eastern Zimbabwe; the wildebeest and buffalos can come from anywhere in southern Africa where major diseases aren't present.

In August 2006, our reintroduction program began with the release of 50 buffalos into a new fenced sanctuary in the park. In the summer of 2007, we added more buffalos and several hundred wildebeest. We hope to relocate about the same numbers of each species every year for the until 2012.

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We also plan to reintroduce four species that were extirpated in central Mozambique more than four decades ago roan antelopes, tsessebes, black rhinos, and white rhinos - and add hippos to the Park's small population.

Hippos play an important ecological role by moving back and forth to their grazing areas, keeping water channels open. We hope to relocate many of them to the area around Lake Urema, deep inside the park.

Among the park's remaining antelopes, the highest priorities for reintroduction are elands, kudus, and impala. Waterbucks, reedbucks, warthogs, sables antelopes, Lichtenstein's hartebeests, bushbucks, and other smaller antelopes are recovering well on their own.

We will also be monitoring carnivore populations, including lions, leopards, hyenas, and wild dogs, and deciding whether to add more. Cheetahs, once present in the Gorongosa region but gone since the 1950s, will be considered for reintroduction as well.

Population Monitoring
As the Park's wildlife populations continue to grow, we will keep a close eye on them to make sure the populations don't rise too high or fall too low, upsetting the balance of the ecosystem. Our research team now conducts aerial surveys twice a year that give us much valuable information on how populations in the Park are changing over time.

Veterinary Work
Our veterinarians watch closely for outbreaks of disease among the Park's wildlife and treat animals that have been injured by human causes. They are also key members of our wildlife reintroduction program, monitoring captive animals' stress levels, treating any that are injured, and testing for disease. There are many veterinary research projects underway including a study of African swine fever.