Ruo River is the largest

tributary A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drai ...

of the

Shire River The Shire is the largest river in Malawi. It is the only outlet of Lake Malawi and flows into the Zambezi River in Mozambique. Its length is . The upper Shire River issues from Lake Malawi and runs approximately before it enters shallow Lake Malo ...

in southern

Malawi Malawi (; or aláwi Tumbuka: ''Malaŵi''), officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeas ...

and

Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...

. It originates from the

Mulanje Massif The Mulanje Massif, also known as Mount Mulanje, is a large inselberg in southern Malawi. Sapitwa Peak, the highest point on the massif at 3,002 m, is the highest point in Malawi. It lies 65 km east of Blantyre, rising sharply from the su ...

(Malawi) and forms of the Malawi-Mozambique border. It joins the Shire River at

Chiromo Chiromo is a town in southern Malawi by the Shire River. The Nairobi suburb of Chiromo near Westlands, as well as University of Nairobi Chiromo Campus and Nairobi's Chiromo Road got their name from this town. Ewart Grogan saw the two rivers ...

. The Ruo River watershed includes the southern slopes of the

Mulanje Mulanje, formerly called Mlanje, is a town in the Southern Region of Malawi, close to the border with Mozambique, to the east. It is near the Mulanje Massif. Location The town of Mulanje lies along the M-2 highway from Thyolo to the west to t ...

Massif and

Shire Highlands The Shire Highlands are a plateau in southern Malawi, located east of the Shire River. It is a major agricultural area and the most densely populated part of the country. Geography The highlands cover an area of roughly 7250 square kilometers. t ...

in Malawi. Its principal tributary is the Thuchila (or Tuchila) River, which drains the southwestern slopes of Mulanje and the southeastern slopes of the

and the Thuchila plain between them. The confluence of the Ruo and Thuchila is near Sandama. The Ruo and its left bank tributaries also drain a portion of Milange District in neighboring Mozambique. Zoa Falls (16°18'27"S 35°17'10"E) has a 60-meter drop, and effectively isolates the fish populations upstream in the Ruo watershed from those of the lower

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 hal ...

and Shire rivers.Tweddle, Denis. "Mulanje". ''Freshwater Ecoregions of the World''. Accessed 17 August 2019

The

Shire Highlands Railway The Shire Highlands Railway Company Ltd was a private railway company in colonial Nyasaland, incorporated in 1895 with the intention of constructing a railway from Blantyre (in modern-day Malawi) to the effective head of navigation of the Shire Ri ...

follows the lower course of the Ruo between Sandama and Chiromo.

Ruo River screeching frog

Frog '' Arthroleptis francei'' was first collected from near the Ruo River on the slopes of the Mulanje Massif. One of its common names is Ruo River screeching frog. Its other common name, France's squeaker, as well as its specific name ''francei'' carry a tragic history. Mr. F. H. France was a young forestry officer who perished in trying to cross the Ruo River close to where ''Arthroleptis francei'' were first collected.

Arthur Loveridge Arthur Loveridge (28 May 1891 – 16 February 1980) was a British biologist and herpetologist who wrote about animals in East Africa, particularly Tanzania, and New Guinea. He gave scientific names to several gecko species in the region. Arthu ...

, the scientist who described the species, named it after France so that "his name may be linked with the forests he sought to preserve on the mountain he loved so well." Despite its connection with river though its history and naming, this frog is a terrestrial species living in leaf litter.

References

Shire River Rivers of Malawi Rivers of Mozambique Tributaries of the Zambezi River International rivers of Africa {{Mozambique-river-stub