The Cuando River (or Kwando in the non-colonial spelling) is a river in south-central Africa flowing through

Angola , national_anthem = "Angola Avante"() , image_map = , map_caption = , capital = Luanda , religion = , religion_year = 2020 , religion_ref = , coordinat ...

and Namibia's Caprivi Strip and into the Linyanti Swamp on the northern border of

Botswana Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label= Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kal ...

. Below the swamp, the river is called the Linyanti River and, farther east, the Chobe River, before it flows into the Zambezi River.

Course

The Cuando rises in the central

plateau In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; ), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. Often one or more sides ...

Angola , national_anthem = "Angola Avante"() , image_map = , map_caption = , capital = Luanda , religion = , religion_year = 2020 , religion_ref = , coordinat ...

on the slopes of

Mount Tembo Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest. Mount or Mounts may also refer to: Places * Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England * Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, Co ...

, thence flowing southeast along the

Zambia Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most central point. Its neighbours are t ...

n border. Along this reach it flows in a maze of channels in a swampy corridor 5–10 km wide (map 1: the border with Zambia is the eastern bank of this floodplain, not the river channel). As with all rivers in south-central Africa its flow varies enormously between the rainy season when it floods and may be several kilometres wide, and the dry season when it may disappear into marshes. The Cuando continues in its marshy channel across the neck of the Caprivi Strip of

Namibia Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...

(map, 2) and then forms the border between Namibia and Botswana as it continues southeast. Some 10,014 years ago, the Cuando merged with the

Okavango River The Okavango River (formerly spelled Okovango or Okovanggo), Also known as the Cubango River, is a river in southwest Africa. It is the fourth-longest river system in southern Africa, running southeastward for . It begins at an elevation of in ...

and they flowed south to Lake Makgadikgadi (which is a seasonal

wetland A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (Anoxic waters, anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in t ...

in current times), but the land in that area was uplifted. As a consequence the Cuando now meets slightly higher ground (map, 4) and breaks up into many channels and swamps (called the Linyanti Swamp) dotted with alluvial islands, nearly disappearing into the Kalahari sands like the Okavango (map, 5). But instead it has diverted east and has been captured by the Zambezi. The flow turns sharply east, still forming the border with

. In the dry season there are few open channels through the swamps and marshes. Beginning at this point it is known as the Linyanti (map, 6), and after it flows through a seasonal lake,

Lake Liambesi A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much larger ...

(map, 7), it is called the Chobe (map, 8). The river then flows into the

Zambezi The Zambezi River (also spelled Zambeze and Zambesi) is the fourth-longest river in Africa, the longest east-flowing river in Africa and the largest flowing into the Indian Ocean from Africa. Its drainage basin covers , slightly less than ha ...

just above the Kazungula Ferry (map, 9). In years when the Okavango experiences a good flood some of the water escapes east along the normally dry channel of the Magwekwana River (also known as Selinda Spillway) into the Linyanti Swamp, thus entering the Zambezi basin. The Selinda Spillway and the

Boteti River The Boteti River (also Botletle RiverHelgren, David M. (1984) "Historical Geomorphology and Geoarchaeology in the Southwestern Makgadikgadi Basin, Botswana" ''Annals of the Association of American Geographers'' 74(2): pp. 298–307, page 298

are the only outlets of the

Okavango basin The Kalahari Basin, also known as the Kalahari Depression, Okavango Basin or the Makgadikgadi basin, is an endorheic basin and large lowland area covering approximately 725,293 km2 covering most of Botswana and Namibia, as well as parts of Ang ...

. On the north side of the Chobe River are the Caprivi Swamps, on the edge of which is the ruined capital of the Kololo people who conquered Barotseland in the 19th Century. So much of the water of the Cuando, Linyanti and Chobe is lost to evaporation in the various swamps that its contribution to the flow of the Zambezi is very small except in occasional years when it floods excessively. The perennial river bifurcation of Selinda Spillway (or Magweggana River), on the Cuando River, connects the Kalahari Basin to the Zambezi Basin.Is this Harry and Meghan's honeymoon hotel?
. The Telegraph. 29 may 2018.

Wildlife

The Cuando system is noted for its wildlife and for most of its length the land either side is protected as game reserves or wildlife management areas. Some of these suffered poaching during wars and conflict in Namibia and Angola, but with peace restored in those countries they have the chance of returning to their former state. The national parks through which it passes or on which it borders are: * Coutada Publica do Luiana (Angola) *

Sioma Ngwezi National Park Sioma Ngwezi National Park is a 5,000-square-kilometre park in the south west corner of Zambia. It is undeveloped and rarely visited, lacking roads and being off the usual tourist tracks, but this may change in the future. Description Like most ...

(Zambia) * Bwabwata National Park (Namibia) *

Mudumu National Park Mudumu is a National Park in Caprivi Region in north-eastern Namibia. The park was established in 1990. It covers an area of . The Kwando River forms the western border with Botswana. Various communal area conservancies and community forests surro ...

(Namibia) * Nkasa Rupara National Park (Namibia) *

Chobe National Park Chobe National Park is Botswana's first national park, and also the most biologically diverse. Located in the north of the country, it is Botswana's third largest park, after Central Kalahari Game Reserve and Gemsbok National Park, and has one of ...

(Botswana)

References

Sources

*"Afrique Centre et Sud", Carte Routiere et Touristique Michelin, Paris (1996) *C. Michael Hogan (2008) ''Makgadikgadi'', ed. A. Burnham, Makgadikgadi Ancient Village or Settlement, The Megalithic Portal and Megalith Map: http://www.megalithic.co.uk/article.php?sid=22373&mode=&order=0 *Robert Mepham, R. H. Hughes, G. M. Bernacsek (1992) A Directory of African Wetlands, International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, United Nations Environment Programme, World Conservation Monitoring Centre, 820 pages

External links

{{Rivers of Angola Rivers of Angola Rivers of Namibia Rivers of Botswana Geography of Zambezi Region Tributaries of the Zambezi River Botswana–Namibia border International rivers of Africa Angola–Zambia border Border rivers