Tinotenda Pudu, 7, went missing from his village in the northwest of the country on December 27. He was eventually found in the Matusadona National Park after a rescue mission involving park rangers, police and the local community, according to a spokesperson from Zimbabwe Parks, the country’s parks and wildlife management authority.

After five "long (and) harrowing days" in the jungle near the Hogwe River, which feeds into Ume River, park rangers found the boy alive on Dec. 31, Murombedzi and park officials said. While lost in the park, the boy slept on a rocky perch, evaded lions, passed elephants and ate wild fruits, according to Murombedzi.

Tinotenda Pundu went missing in Zimbabwe after getting lost but survived for five days before being rescued by park rangers.

An unimaginable story of survival has emerged from Zimbabwe, where an 8-year-old boy, Tinotenda Pudu, defied the odds after spending five grueling days in the predator-laden wilderness of Matusadona National Park.