A lion yawns during a warm fall afternoon March 20, 2008 at the Chipangali Wildlife Orphanage in central Zimbabwe./Getty Images
A railway line tracker was killed by a lion in Dete, Zimbabwe's Matebeleland North Province, an official confirmed Monday.
Police and rangers from the Zimbabwe National Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (Zimparks) found the 43-year-old victim’s body last Thursday, Matebeleland North police spokesperson Siphiwe Makonese said.
Zimparks spokesperson Tinashe Farawo called for enhanced efforts to address human-wildlife conflict in the country.
"This is one of the issues we always raise that our parks are overpopulated and because of that people are being killed,” he said.
"Last year we lost 40 people who were killed by wildlife because of human-wildlife conflict,” Farawo said. “We have to make sure people benefit from wildlife than to lose property and lives.”
There has been a spike in human-wildlife conflict in Zimbabwe, largely attributed to growing human population that has led to diminishing natural habitat for wildlife.