Lake Tanganyika

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Lake Tanganyika
Map of Lake Tanganyika
Coordinates	5°30′S 29°30′E
Lake type	Rift Valley Lake
Primary sources	Ruzizi River Malagarasi River Kalambo River
Primary outflows	Lukuga River
Catchment area	231,000 km²
Basin countries	Burundi The DRC Tanzania Zambia
Max-length	673 km
Max-width	50km / 72km
Surface area	32,900 km²
Average depth	570m
Max-depth	1,470m
Water volume	18,900 km³
Shore length1	1,828 km
Surface elevation	773m
Settlements	Kigoma, Tanzania Kalemie, DRC
1 Shore length is  an imprecise measure which may not be standardized for this article.

Lake Tanganyika is  a large lake in central Africa (3° 20' to 8° 48' South and  from 29° 5' to 31° 15' East). it  is estimated to be the second largest lake in the world by volume, and  the second deepest, in both cases after Lake Baikal in Siberia. The lake is  divided between four countries – Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Tanzania and  Zambia, with the DRC (45%) and  Tanzania (41%) possessing the majority of the lake.

Contents 1 Geography 2 Biology 2.1 Species of note 3 Industry 4 Transport 5 History 6 See also 7 References 8 External links

[edit] Geography

The lake is  situated within the Western Rift of the Great Rift Valley and  is confined by the mountainous walls of the valley. it  is the largest rift lake in Africa and  the second largest lake by surface area on the continent. it  is the deepest lake in Africa and  holds the greatest volume of fresh water. it  extends for 673 km in a general north-south direction and  averages 50 km in width. The lake covers 32,900 km², with a shoreline of 1,828km and  a mean depth of 570 m and  a maximum depth of 1,470 m (4,823 ft) (in the northern basin) it  holds an  estimated 18,900 km³ (4500 cubic miles). it  has an  average surface temperature of 25°C and  a pH averaging 8.4. Additionally, beneath the 500m of water there is  circa 4,500 metres of sediment overlaying the rock floor.

The enormous depth and  tropical location of the lake prevent 'turnover' of watermasses, which means that much of the lower depths of the lake are  so-called 'fossil water' and  are anoxic (lacking oxygen). The catchment area of the lake covers 231,000 km², with two main rivers flowing into the lake, numerous smaller rivers and  streams (due to the steep mountains that keep drainage areas small), and  one major outflow, the Lukuga River, which empties into the Congo River drainage.

The major inflows are  the Ruzizi River, entering the north of the lake from Lake Kivu, and  the Malagarasi River, which is  Tanzania's second largest river, entering in the east side of Lake Tanganyika. The Malagarasi pre-dates Lake Tanganyika and  was formerly continuous with the Congo river.

[edit] Biology

The lake holds at least 250 species of cichlid fish and  150 non-cichlid species, most of which live along the shoreline down to a depth of approximately 600 feet). The largest biomass of fish, however, is  in the pelagic zone (open waters) and  is dominated by six species - two species of "Tanganyika sardine" and  four species of predatory Lates (related to, but not the same as, the Nile Perch that has devastated Lake Victoria cichlids). Almost all (98%) of the Tanganyikan cichlid species are  endemic (exclusively native) to the lake. This kind of elevated endemism occurs among the numerous invertebrates in the lake, most especially the molluscs (which possess similar forms to that of many marine molluscs), crabs, shrimps, copepods, jellyfishes, leeches, etc.

Several species of cichlid, including many shell-dwelling species, have  also become popular as aquarium fish due to their unique and  attractive colouration and  body shapes, unusual lifestyles and  relatively high intelligence.

[edit] Species of note

• Aquatic cobra.
• Cyphotilapia frontosa, a striped fish native to Tanganyika.
• Altolamprologus Calvus,Common name: Black Calvus, A native to Tanganyika. A laterally compressed fish with stripes and  small dots. Feeds on insect larvae, small crustaceans,and small fry

[edit] Industry

The lake's fish serve as a major source of protein for local peoples. Currently there are  around 45,000 people directly involved in the fisheries operating from almost 800 sites, there around 1 million people dependent on the fishers, and  Lake Tanganyika fish can be found exported throughout East Africa. Commercial fishing began in the mid-1950s and  has had an  extremely heavy impact on the pelagic fish species, in 1995 the total catch was around 180,000 tonnes. Former industrial fisheries, which boomed in the 1980s, have  subsequently collapsed.

[edit] Transport

There are  two ferries which carry passengers and  cargo along the eastern shore of the lake - the MV Liemba between Kigoma and  Mpulungu and  the MV Mwongozo, which runs between Kigoma and  Bujumbura.

• The port town of Kigoma is  the railhead for the railway from Dar es Salaam in Tanzania.
• The port town of Kalemie is  the railhead for the D.R. Congo rail network.

[edit] History

The first known Europeans to find the lake were the explorers Richard Burton and  John Speke, in 1858. They located it  while searching for the source of the Nile River. Speke continued and  found the actual source, Lake Victoria.

The Lake was the scene of two famous battles, under the command of the British Officer Geoffrey Spicer-Simson. it  was retold in a book by Giles Foden entitled  and  Toutou Go Forth. The Bizarre Battle for Lake Tanganyika">Mimi and  Toutou Go Forth. The Bizarre Battle for Lake Tanganyika

[edit] See also

• 2005 Lake Tanganyika earthquake
• Great Lakes
• List of lakes
• List of world's largest lakes
• Rift Valley lakes

[edit] References

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Lake Tanganyika

• Food and  Agriculture Organization of the United Nations