Khone Falls
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Khone Falls is a waterfall on the Mekong River in Laos in the Ban Hang Khone province near its border with Cambodia. The Khone Falls are the main reason that the Mekong is not navigable into China.
The falls' total height is 21 meters (70 feet) in segmented cascades (or rapids) stretching over 10 kilometers (six miles) of the river's length. The average discharge of the cataract is nearly 11,000 cubic meters per second (3 million U.S. gallons per second), though the highest volume on record was reached at over 49,000 cubic meters per second (13 million U.S. gallons per second).
The falls are home to the plabuck, an endangered species of catfish said to be the largest freshwater fish in the world. The plabuck is alleged to reach lengths of 3 meters (10 feet) and weights of up to 450 kilograms (1,000 pounds).
[edit] References
Khone Falls. Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved on March 4, 2005. Mekong. Answers.com Encyclopedia. Retrieved on March 4, 2005. Khone Falls. Mekong Sources. Retrieved on February 13, 2005.
[edit] External links
- Mekong Express Laos Photo Album: Khone Falls
- Visit Laos: Champassak Province
- Mekong River Commission Fisheries Programme
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