The Mangoky River is a 564-kilometer-long (350 mi) river in

Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f ...

in the regions of

Atsimo-Andrefana Atsimo-Andrefana (South West) is a region of Madagascar. It borders Menabe in north, Amoron'i Mania and Haute Matsiatra in northeast, Ihorombe and Anosy in east and Androy in southeast. The capital is Toliara and the population was 1,799,088 i ...

and

Anosy Anosy is one of the 23 regions of Madagascar. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the eastern side of what was once the Toliara Province. The name ''Anosy'' means "island(s)" in Malagasy. Due to a strategic sea route running alon ...

. It is formed by the Mananantanana and the

Matsiatra The Matsiatra is a river in Haute Matsiatra region, is located in central and western Madagascar. It flows into the Mangoky River. Together with the Mananantanana, it forms the Mangoky River The Mangoky River is a 564-kilometer-long (350 ...

. Another important affluent is the Zomandao River. It rises in the Central Highlands of

just east of the city of

Fianarantsoa Fianarantsoa is a city (commune urbaine) in south central Madagascar, and is the capital of Haute Matsiatra Region. History It was built in the early 19th century by the Merina as the administrative capital for the newly conquered Betsileo kin ...

. The river flows generally in a westerly direction out of the highlands, crosses the southern extension of the

Bemaraha Plateau The Bemaraha Formation is a Middle Jurassic (early Bajocian to early Bathonian) geological formation of the Morondava Basin of Madagascar. The lime mudstones, grainstones and limestones of the formation were deposited in lagoonal and reefal enviro ...

, reaches the coastal plain and its delta, and enters the

Mozambique Channel The Mozambique Channel (, , ) is an arm of the Indian Ocean located between the Southeast African countries of Madagascar and Mozambique. The channel is about long and across at its narrowest point, and reaches a depth of about off the coa ...

north of the city of

Morombe Morombe is an urban municipality (commune urbaine) on the south-west coast in Atsimo-Andrefana, Madagascar. It can be reached by the National road 55 or pirogue from Morondava. It is situated at 283 km from Tulear. An airport serves the town. ...

at . Most of Madagascar has undergone serious

deforestation Deforestation or forest clearance is the removal and destruction of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then converted to non-forest use. Deforestation can involve conversion of forest land to farms, ranches, or urban use. Ab ...

during the last 40 years, chiefly from

slash-and-burn Slash-and-burn agriculture is a form of shifting cultivation that involves the cutting and burning of plants in a forest or woodland to create a Field (agriculture), field called a swidden. The method begins by cutting down the trees and woody p ...

practises by indigenous peoples. This loss of forest has led to extreme

soil erosion Soil erosion is the denudation or wearing away of the Topsoil, upper layer of soil. It is a form of soil degradation. This natural process is caused by the dynamic activity of erosive agents, that is, water, ice (glaciers), snow, Atmosphere of Ea ...

in the Mangoky River basin, as evidenced by the many

sandbar In oceanography, geomorphology, and geoscience, a shoal is a natural submerged ridge, bank, or bar that consists of, or is covered by, sand or other unconsolidated material, and rises from the bed of a body of water close to the surface or ...

s located within the river channel. Silt-laden, greenish-tan

Lake Ihotry Lake Ihotry is the second largest lake of Madagascar. It is a closed saline lake in semi-arid southwestern part of Madagascar in the region of Atsimo-Andrefana. Its area varies seasonally, from 96 km2 to 112 km2. Roads It can be reache ...

is clearly discernible south of the river. Between the lake and the coast is a rather large, whitish area of sand interspersed with silt-laden ponds. The southern portion of the delta is dominated by successive barrier island and spit formation. In contrast, the northern, protected portion of the delta is dominated by tidal passes and

mangrove A mangrove is a shrub or tree that grows mainly in coastal saline water, saline or brackish water. Mangroves grow in an equatorial climate, typically along coastlines and tidal rivers. They have particular adaptations to take in extra oxygen a ...

swamps.

Bridge

Plans for a Mangoky river bridge on the RN 9 began in 2020. It will be the longest bridge of Madagascar at 880 m. It will be built by the

China Road and Bridge Corporation China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC), a subsidiary of China Communications Construction Company (CCCC), is a Chinese state-owned construction and engineering firm that focuses on global infrastructure projects such as highways, skyways, rai ...

References

Rivers of Madagascar Mozambique Channel Rivers of Atsimo-Andrefana Rivers of Anosy {{Madagascar-river-stub

Bridge

See also

References