A suspected anthrax outbreak in one of Zimbabwe’s famous parks has resulted in the death of some 100 impala, according to a news24 report.

Image/U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Image/U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Zimbabwe state wildlife authority spokesperson Tinashe Farawo confirmed the outbreak at Mana Pools National Park.

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“We’ve managed to contain the disease. Our vet doctors are down there: they are working flat out to ensure that we clear the area,” he said.

“We are trying to avoid the spread of the disease to other species. At the moment we are dealing with impalas only,” he added.

Anthrax is a bacterial pathogen in livestock and wild animals. Some of the more common herbivores are cattle, sheep,goats, horses, camels and deer. Anthrax is a very serious disease of livestock because it can potentially cause the rapid lossof a large number of animals in a very short time. Affected animals are often found dead with no illness detected.

It infects humans primarily through occupational or incidental exposure with infected animals of their skins.

When conditions become favorable, the spores germinate into colonies of bacteria. An example would be a grazing cow ingests spores that in the cow, germinate, grow spread and eventuallykill the animal. Anthrax is caused by the bacterium, Bacillus anthracis. This spore forming bacteria can survive in the environment for years because of its ability to resist heat, cold, drying, etc.  This is usually the infectious stage of anthrax.

The bacteria will form spores in the carcass and then return to the soil to infect other animals. The vegetative form is rarely implicated in transmission.  Strict enforcement of quarantines and proper burning and burying of carcasses from livestock suspected to have died from anthrax is important to prevent further soil contamination with the bacterial spores.

There are no reports of person-to-person transmission of anthrax. People get anthrax by handling contaminated animal or animal products, consuming undercooked meat of infected animals and more recently, intentional release of spores.