Malawi investigates mysterious mass deaths of hippos in a national park

Wildlife officials in Malawi are investigating the mysterious death of more than two dozen hippos in a national park.

The first carcbades – eight in total – were discovered on 10 October in Liwonde National Park, southern Malawi, which is home to a large population of hippos of about 1,950 people. Several other hippopotamuses, mostly adult males, were found dead in the following weeks, according to wildlife officials.

Three other people – two adult females and a calf – were found dead on Wednesday, bringing the number to 25, officials said.

LightRocket via Getty Images, FILE

Brighton Kumchedwa, director of the Malawi Department of National Parks and Wildlife, described the mbad deaths as "strange and unprecedented".

"As this is happening for the first time here in Malawi, we have no answers to the problem," Kumchedwa told ABC News on Wednesday.

Some of the dead amphibian mammals showed signs of trauma, according to Kumchedwa.

LightRocket via Getty Images, FILE

Causes of death are investigated by a team of wildlife experts. Soil and water samples from the park were collected and sent for testing in specialized laboratories located near Botswana and South Africa, Kumchedwa said.

The results of the tests and lab tests will take about a month, according to Kumchedwa.

Hippos are considered "vulnerable" to the extinction of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature's Red List of Threatened Species.