Hwange National Park

At least 55 elephants have died of starvation in Zimbabwe's largest national park in the past two months as heavy droughts force animals to seek food and water in neighboring areas, the Associated Press reported.

"The problem is real and the situation is terrible," said a spokesman for the local National Park Service. It has been the largest drought in the country for years.

Another US trophy hunter is suspected of killing a lion in Zimbabwe without a permit, authorities in Harare said on August 2, days after the killing of Cecil the lion by an American dentist caused global outrage.  

The American dentist who killed Cecil the lion a month ago in Zimbabwe paid for an illegal hunt and should be extradited to the southern African nation to face justice, environment minister Oppah Muchinguri said on July 31.

A wealthy American dentist who used a bow and arrow to shoot Zimbabwe's beloved Cecil the lion faced fierce criticism on July 28 amid allegations that it took 40 hours for the animal to die.