The Katonga River is a river in Uganda, in

East Africa East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territories make up Eastern Africa: Due to the historical ...

Location and description

The Katonga River is located in the southwestern part of Uganda. Its channel is continuous between

Lake Victoria Lake Victoria is one of the African Great Lakes. With a surface area of approximately , Lake Victoria is Africa's largest lake by area, the world's largest tropical lake, and the world's second-largest fresh water lake by surface area after ...

and Lake George, reflecting that it once drained away from Lake Victoria into Lake George along its entire length. Regional uplifting events between the two lakes associated with the western limb ( Albertine Rift) of the geologically active

East African Rift The East African Rift (EAR) or East African Rift System (EARS) is an active continental rift zone in East Africa. The EAR began developing around the onset of the Miocene, 22–25 million years ago. In the past it was considered to be part of a ...

system, has caused the swampy region to the southwest of Lake Wamala to become the new

watershed Watershed is a hydrological term, which has been adopted in other fields in a more or less figurative sense. It may refer to: Hydrology * Drainage divide, the line that separates neighbouring drainage basins * Drainage basin, called a "watershe ...

for the Katonga River, which now principally flows east into Lake Victoria, augmented by several tributaries along its course. This watershed is located approximately 0°13'N 30°39'E near the

Katonga Wildlife Reserve The Katonga Wildlife Reserve is a wildlife reserve in western Uganda, along the banks of the Katonga River. The reserve was established in 1998 and has approximately . Many of the species of plants and animals in the reserve are unique to its wet ...

, and at a distance of more than 120 km from Lake Victoria. During wet seasons, raised water levels in the vicinity of its swampy watershed will occasionally force some water to flow west from this point into the western section of the Katonga River which feeds Lake George, but the bulk of the flow still continues eastwards into Lake Victoria. West of its watershed, the Katonga River is also fed by several tributaries along its course to Lake George.

External links

Katonga Wildlife ReserveRivers and Lakes of Uganda

References

{{coord, 00, 12, N, 30, 50, E, display=title Rivers of Uganda Kalungu District Bukomansimbi District Mpigi District Butambala District Gomba District Mityana District Sembabule District Kazo District Mubende District Ibanda District Kamwenge District

Location and description

External links

See also

References