Abstract:
Urban green spaces (UGS) mitigate negative impacts of urban living and provide positive effects on
citizens’ mood, health and well-being. The net effect of UGS on wildlife health and human welfare
remains understudied in urban zones proximal to wildlife rich areas. This study assessed the
concomitant relationship between the environment and health of wildlife in Hwange Town in
Zimbabwe through a questionnaire survey from June—December 2022. This study aimed to: i)
assess the local perceptions on the link between urban ecology and urban ecosystems relative to
wildlife health, ii) determine the local perceptions on the changes in the areal extent of green
spaces, and iii) examine local perceptions towards green spaces and human-wildlife conflict in
Hwange Town. Locals indicated that agricultural activities, urbanisation, mining and poaching
were destroying and polluting the natural habitat. Increased magnitude, impact and frequency of
wildlife-human conflicts signals increasing depletion of green spaces and expansion of urbanisation
into wildlife habitats. There was no statistically significant correlation (r = 0.088; p = 0.172) in
the local perceptions on the relation between ecosystem and well-being of wildlife. The urban
ecosystem mosaic complex is unpredictable, heterogenous and evolving with human activities
imploring a need for optimisation of human-activities and wildlife wellbeing. However, without
financial and infrastructural support local communities are unable to conserve wildlife. We suggest
community-based wildlife protection programmes integrating citizen science data (local ecological
knowledge) using existing information communication platforms as alternative options to sustain
wildlife conservation in urban green spaces in wildlife rich developing towns.
