Victoria Falls
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Victoria Falls ( Lozi: ''Mosi-oa-Tunya'', "Thundering Smoke/Smoke that Rises";
Tonga Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania. The country has 171 islands, of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in the southern Pacific Ocean. accordin ...
: ''Shungu Namutitima'', "Boiling Water") is a
waterfall A waterfall is any point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf. Waterfalls can be formed in seve ...
on the
Zambezi The Zambezi (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 half of t ...
River, located in
Zimbabwe file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Bots ...
. It is one of the world's largest waterfalls and the combination of its width and height result in the world’s largest sheet of falling water . The region around it has a high degree of biodiversity in both plants and animals.
Archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...
and oral history describe a long record of African knowledge of the site. Although known to some European geographers before the 19th century, Scottish missionary
David Livingstone David Livingstone (; 19 March 1813 – 1 May 1873) was a Scottish physician, Congregationalist, pioneer Christian missionary with the London Missionary Society, and an explorer in Africa. Livingstone was married to Mary Moffat Livings ...
identified the falls in 1855, naming them Victoria Falls after
Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...
. Since the mid-20th century, the site has been a major tourist destination. Zambia and Zimbabwe both have national parks and tourism infrastructure at the site. Research in the late 2010s found that precipitation variability due to climate change is likely to alter the character of the falls.


Name origins

David Livingstone David Livingstone (; 19 March 1813 – 1 May 1873) was a Scottish physician, Congregationalist, pioneer Christian missionary with the London Missionary Society, and an explorer in Africa. Livingstone was married to Mary Moffat Livings ...
was the first European recorded to have viewed the falls on 16 November 1855, from an island now known as Livingstone Island, one of two land masses in the middle of the river, immediately upstream from the falls near the Zambian shore. Livingstone named his sighting in honour of
Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...
, but the
Lozi language Lozi, also known as Silozi and Rozi, is a Bantu language of the Niger–Congo language family within the Sotho–Tswana branch of Zone S (S.30), that is spoken by the Lozi people, primarily in southwestern Zambia and in Namibia. The lan ...
name, ''Mosi-oa-Tunya''—"The Smoke That Thunders"—continues in common usage. The
World Heritage List World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural heritag ...
officially recognises both names. Livingstone also cited an older name, ''Seongo'' or ''Chongwe'', which means "The Place of the Rainbow", as a result of the constant spray. The nearby national park in Zambia is named ''Mosi-oa-Tunya'', whereas the national park and town on the Zimbabwean shore are both named Victoria Falls.


Size

Victoria Falls is classified as the largest based on its combined width of and height of , resulting in the world's largest sheet of falling water. For a considerable distance upstream from the falls, the
Zambezi The Zambezi (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 half of t ...
flows over a level sheet of
basalt Basalt (; ) is an aphanite, aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the planetary surface, surface of a terrestrial ...
in a shallow
valley A valley is an elongated low area often running between hills or mountains and typically containing a river or stream running from one end to the other. Most valleys are formed by erosion of the land surface by rivers or streams over ...
, bounded by low and distant
sandstone Sandstone is a Clastic rock#Sedimentary clastic rocks, clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of grain size, sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate mineral, silicate grains, Cementation (geology), cemented together by another mineral. Sand ...
hills. The river's course is dotted with numerous tree-covered
island An island or isle is a piece of land, distinct from a continent, completely surrounded by water. There are continental islands, which were formed by being split from a continent by plate tectonics, and oceanic islands, which have never been ...
s, which increase in number when the river approaches the falls. There is a flat
plateau In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; : plateaus or plateaux), 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. ...
extending in all directions. The falls are formed where the full width of the river plummets in a single vertical drop into a transverse chasm wide, carved along a fracture zone in the basalt plateau. The depth of the chasm, called the First Gorge, varies from at its western end to in the centre. The only outlet from the First Gorge is a gap about two-thirds of the way across the width of the falls from the western end. The whole volume of the river pours into the Victoria Falls gorges from this narrow cleft. Two islands are situated on the crest of the falls: Boaruka Island (or Cataract Island) near the western bank, and Livingstone Island near the middle. At less than full flood, additional islets divide the curtain of water into separate parallel streams. The main streams are named, in order from Zimbabwe (west) to Zambia (east): the ''Devil's Cataract'' (called ''Leaping Water'' by some), the ''Main Falls'', the ''Rainbow Falls'' (the highest) and the ''Eastern Cataract''. The River Zambezi, upstream from the falls, experiences a
rainy season The rainy season is the time of year when most of a region's average annual rainfall occurs. Rainy Season may also refer to: * ''Rainy Season'' (short story), a 1989 short horror story by Stephen King * "Rainy Season", a 2018 song by Monni * '' ...
from late November to early April, and a
dry season The dry season is a yearly period of low rainfall, especially in the tropics. The weather in the tropics is dominated by the tropical rain belt, which moves from the northern to the southern tropics and back over the course of the year. The t ...
the rest of the year. The river's annual
flood A flood is an overflow of water (list of non-water floods, or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are of significant con ...
season is February to May with a peak in April.World Commission on Dams website:
"Case Study – Kariba Dam-Zambezi River Basin" Annex 13 & 14 Victoria Falls Mean Monthly Flows. Website accessed 1 March 2007. This website gives mean monthly flow rates in
cubic metre The cubic metre (in Commonwealth English and international spelling as used by the International Bureau of Weights and Measures) or cubic meter (in American English) is the unit of volume in the International System of Units (SI). Its symbol is m ...
s per second (i.e., the total volume of water passing in each calendar month divided by the number of seconds in the month), the standard measure used in hydrology to indicate seasonal variation in flow. A figure of around 9,000 m3/s (318,000 cu ft) is quoted by many websites for Victoria Falls but this is the mean maximum instantaneous rate, which is only achieved for a few days per year. The figure of 536 million m3/minute (18.9 billion cu ft/min) on some websites (e.g. ZNTB) is an error for 536 million litres/minute (equivalent to 9,100 m3/s, 142 million U.S. gallons or 118 million Imperial gallons per min). The '10-year maximum' is the mean of the maximum monthly rate returned in a ten-year period.
The spray from the falls typically rises to a height of over , sometimes up to twice as high, and is visible from up to away. At full moon, a "moonbow" can also be seen. During the flood season, however, the foot and the face of the waterfall can't be seen. When the dry season takes effect, the islets on the crest become wider and more numerous. From September to January, up to half of the rocky face of the falls may become dry, allowing the bottom of the First Gorge to be seen along most of its length. At this time, it becomes possible (though not necessarily safe) to walk across some stretches of the river at the crest. It is also possible to walk to the bottom of the First Gorge at the Zimbabwean side. The minimum flow, which occurs in November, is around a tenth of the April figure; this variation in flow is greater than that of other major falls and causes the Victoria Falls' annual average flow rate to be lower than might be expected based on the maximum flow. In 2019 unusually low rain dramatically reduced the fall to the lowest flow in a century. Global
climate change Present-day climate change includes both global warming—the ongoing increase in Global surface temperature, global average temperature—and its wider effects on Earth's climate system. Climate variability and change, Climate change in ...
and changed climate patterns are suggested to have caused this.


Gorges

The entire volume of the
Zambezi The Zambezi (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 half of t ...
River pours through the First Gorge's wide exit for a distance of about , then enters a zigzagging series of gorges designated by the order in which the river reaches them. Water entering the ''Second Gorge'' makes a sharp right turn and has carved out a deep pool there called the ''Boiling Pot''. Reached via a steep footpath from the Zambian side, it is about across. Its surface is smooth at low water, but at high water is marked by enormous, slow swirls and heavy turbulence. The principal gorges are * First Gorge: the one the river falls into at Victoria Falls * Second Gorge: south of falls, long, spanned by the Victoria Falls Bridge * Third Gorge: south, long, containing the Victoria Falls Power Station * Fourth Gorge: south, long * Fifth Gorge: south, long * Songwe Gorge: south, long named after the small Songwe River coming from the north-east, and the deepest at , the level of the river in them varies by up to between wet and dry seasons.


Formation

The Upper Zambezi River originally drained south through present day
Botswana Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory part of the Kalahari Desert. It is bordered by South Africa to the sou ...
to join the
Limpopo River The Limpopo River () rises in South Africa and flows generally eastward through Mozambique to the Indian Ocean. The term Limpopo is derived from Rivombo (Livombo/Lebombo), a group of Tsonga settlers led by Hosi Rivombo who settled in the mou ...
. A general uplift of the land between Zimbabwe and the
Kalahari Desert The Kalahari Desert is a large semiarid climate, semiarid sandy savanna in Southern Africa covering including much of Botswana as well as parts of Namibia and South Africa. It is not to be confused with the Angolan, Namibian, and South African ...
about 2 million years ago blocked this drainage route, and a large
paleolake A lake is often a naturally occurring, relatively large and fixed body of water on or near the Earth's surface. It is localized in a basin or interconnected basins surrounded by dry land. Lakes lie completely on land and are separate from t ...
known as Lake Makgadikgadi formed between the Kalahari and the Batoka Basaltic Plateau of Zimbabwe and Zambia. This lake was originally
endorheic An endorheic basin ( ; also endoreic basin and endorreic basin) is a drainage basin that normally retains water and allows no outflow to other external bodies of water (e.g. rivers and oceans); instead, the water drainage flows into permanent ...
and had no natural outlet. Under wetter climate conditions about 20,000 years BP, it eventually overflowed and began to drain to the east, cutting the Batoka Gorge through the basalt. The recent geological history of Victoria Falls can be seen in the overall form of the Batoka Gorge, with its six individual gorges and eight past positions of the falls. The east–west oriented gorges imply structural control with alignment along
joints A joint or articulation (or articular surface) is the connection made between bones, ossicles, or other hard structures in the body which link an animal's skeletal system into a functional whole.Saladin, Ken. Anatomy & Physiology. 7th ed. McGraw- ...
of shatter zones, or faults with of vertical displacement as is the case of the second and fifth gorges.
Headward erosion Headward erosion is erosion at the origin of a stream channel, which causes the origin to move back away from the direction of the stream flow, lengthening the stream channel.Essentials of Geology, 3rd Ed, Stephen Marshak It can also refer t ...
along these structural lines of weakness would establish a new fall line and abandonment of the earlier line. North-south oriented joints control the south flowing sections of the river. One of these is the "Boiling Pot", which links the First Gorge with the Second Gorge. The falls may have already started cutting back the next major gorge, at the dip in one side of the "Devil's Cataract", between the western river bank and Cataract Island. The lip in the current falls is lowest here and carries the greatest concentration of water at flood stage. The sedimentary sequence overlying the
basalt Basalt (; ) is an aphanite, aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the planetary surface, surface of a terrestrial ...
at the Zambezi River margins is called the Victoria Falls Formation, which consists of
gravel Gravel () is a loose aggregation of rock fragments. Gravel occurs naturally on Earth as a result of sedimentation, sedimentary and erosion, erosive geological processes; it is also produced in large quantities commercially as crushed stone. Gr ...
, the Pipe
sandstone Sandstone is a Clastic rock#Sedimentary clastic rocks, clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of grain size, sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate mineral, silicate grains, Cementation (geology), cemented together by another mineral. Sand ...
,
Kalahari The Kalahari Desert is a large semiarid sandy savanna in Southern Africa covering including much of Botswana as well as parts of Namibia and South Africa. It is not to be confused with the Angolan, Namibian, and South African Namib coastal d ...
sand, aeolian sand and
alluvium Alluvium (, ) is loose clay, silt, sand, or gravel that has been deposited by running water in a stream bed, on a floodplain, in an alluvial fan or beach, or in similar settings. Alluvium is also sometimes called alluvial deposit. Alluvium is ...
. A 15–45 m scarp bounds the river about 5–6 km from the main channel, and a series of
river terrace Fluvial terraces are elongated terraces that flank the sides of floodplains and fluvial valleys all over the world. They consist of a relatively level strip of land, called a "tread", separated from either an adjacent floodplain, other fluvial t ...
s are evident between the scarp and the channel.


History


Geological history

The basalt plateau of Victoria Falls, over which the
Zambezi River The Zambezi (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 half of t ...
flows, was formed during the
Jurassic The Jurassic ( ) is a Geological period, geologic period and System (stratigraphy), stratigraphic system that spanned from the end of the Triassic Period million years ago (Mya) to the beginning of the Cretaceous Period, approximately 143.1 Mya. ...
period, around 200 million years ago.


Pre-colonial history

Early Stone Age The Lower Paleolithic (or Lower Palaeolithic) is the earliest subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age. It spans the time from around 3.3 million years ago when the first evidence for stone tool production and use by hominins appears ...
Acheulean Acheulean (; also Acheulian and Mode II), from the French after the type site of Saint-Acheul, is an archaeological industry of stone tool manufacture characterized by the distinctive oval and pear-shaped "hand axes" associated with ''Homo ...
stone artefacts and
Oldowan The Oldowan (or Mode I) was a widespread stone tool archaeological industry during the early Lower Paleolithic spanning the late Pliocene and the first half of the Early Pleistocene. These early tools were simple, usually made by chipping one ...
tools were excavated at archaeological sites around the falls, as well as
Sangoan __TOC__ The Sangoan is a prehistoric lithic industry of sub-Saharan Africa, broadly dated to the later part of the Early Stone Age (ESA) and the transition to the Middle Stone Age (MSA), approximately between 500,000 and 300,000 years ago. First ...
tools and Lupemban artefacts dating to the
Middle Stone Age The Middle Stone Age (or MSA) was a period of African prehistory between the Early Stone Age and the Late Stone Age. It is generally considered to have begun around 280,000 years ago and ended around 50–25,000 years ago. The beginnings of ...
.
Early Iron Age The Iron Age () is the final epoch of the three historical Metal Ages, after the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age. It has also been considered as the final age of the three-age division starting with prehistory (before recorded history) and progr ...
pottery was excavated at a
vlei A vlei (; ) is a shallow minor lake, mostly of a seasonal or intermittent lake, intermittent nature. It even might refer to seasonal ponds or marshy patches where frogs and similar marsh dwellers breed. Commonly, vleis vary in their extent, or e ...
site near Masuma Dam in the early 1960s. Evidence for
iron smelting Smelting is a process of applying heat and a chemical reducing agent to an ore to extract a desired base metal product. It is a form of extractive metallurgy that is used to obtain many metals such as iron, copper, silver, tin, lead and zinc ...
was also found in a settlement dating to the late first millennium AD. The southern Tonga people known as the Batoka/Tokalea called the falls ''Shungu na mutitima''. The Matabele, later arrivals, named them ''aManz' aThunqayo'', and the Batswana and
Makololo The Kololo or Makololo are a subgroup of the Sotho-Tswana people native to Southern Africa. In the early 19th century, they were displaced by the Zulu, migrating north to Barotseland, Zambia. They conquered the territory of the Luyana people an ...
(whose language is used by the
Lozi people The Lozi people, also known as Balozi, are a Bantu-speaking ethnic group native to Southern Africa. They have significant populations in Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. The Lozi language, Silozi, is used as the formal language in e ...
) call them ''Mosi-o-Tunya''. All these names mean essentially "the smoke that thunders".''The Northern Rhodesia Journal'' online
"Native Name of Victoria Falls", Vol I No 6 p. 68 (1952). Accessed 28 February 2007.
A map drawn by Nicolas de Fer in 1715 shows the fall clearly marked in the correct position. It also shows dotted lines denoting trade routes that
David Livingstone David Livingstone (; 19 March 1813 – 1 May 1873) was a Scottish physician, Congregationalist, pioneer Christian missionary with the London Missionary Society, and an explorer in Africa. Livingstone was married to Mary Moffat Livings ...
followed 140 years later. A map from c. 1750 drawn by Jacques Nicolas Bellin for Abbé Antoine François Prevost d'Exiles marks the falls as "cataractes" and notes a settlement to the north of the Zambezi as being friendly with the Portuguese at the time.


19th century

In November 1855,
David Livingstone David Livingstone (; 19 March 1813 – 1 May 1873) was a Scottish physician, Congregationalist, pioneer Christian missionary with the London Missionary Society, and an explorer in Africa. Livingstone was married to Mary Moffat Livings ...
was the first European who saw the falls, when he traveled from the upper Zambezi to the mouth of the river between 1852 and 1856. The falls were well known to local tribes, and
Voortrekker The Great Trek (, ) was a northward migration of Dutch-speaking settlers who travelled by wagon trains from the Cape Colony into the interior of modern South Africa from 1836 onwards, seeking to live beyond the Cape's British colonial adminis ...
hunters may have known of them, as may the Arabs under a name equivalent to "the end of the world". Europeans were sceptical of their reports, perhaps thinking that the lack of mountains and valleys on the plateau made a large fall unlikely. Livingstone had been told about the falls before he reached them from upriver and was paddled across to the Livingstone Island in Zambia. In 1860, Livingstone returned to the area and made a detailed study of the falls with John Kirk. Other early European visitors included Portuguese explorer Serpa Pinto,
Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus *Czech (surnam ...
explorer
Emil Holub Emil Holub (7 October 1847 – 21 February 1902) was a Czechs, Czech physician, explorer, cartographer, and ethnographer in Africa. Early life Holub was born in Holice in eastern Kingdom of Bohemia, Bohemia (then within the Austrian Empire, no ...
, who made the first detailed plan of the falls and its surroundings in 1875 (published in 1880), and British artist Thomas Baines, who executed some of the earliest paintings of the falls. Until the area was opened up by the building of the railway in 1905, though, the falls were seldom visited by other Europeans. Some writers believe that the Portuguese priest Gonçalo da Silveira was the first European to catch sight of the falls back in the sixteenth century.


History since 1900


Victoria Falls Bridge initiates tourism

European settlement of the Victoria Falls area started around 1900 in response to the desire of
Cecil Rhodes Cecil John Rhodes ( ; 5 July 185326 March 1902) was an English-South African mining magnate and politician in southern Africa who served as Prime Minister of the Cape Colony from 1890 to 1896. He and his British South Africa Company founded th ...
'
British South Africa Company The British South Africa Company (BSAC or BSACo) was chartered in 1889 following the amalgamation of Cecil Rhodes' Central Search Association and the London-based Exploring Company Ltd, which had originally competed to capitalize on the expecte ...
for
mineral rights Mineral rights are property rights to exploit an area for the minerals it harbors. Mineral rights can be separate from property ownership (see Split estate). Mineral rights can refer to sedentary minerals that do not move below the Earth's surfa ...
and imperial rule north of the Zambezi, and the exploitation of other natural resources such as timber forests north-east of the falls, and ivory and animal skins. Before 1905, the river was crossed above the falls at the
Old Drift Old and Young Drift are geographic names given to the morainic landscapes that were formed in Central Europe; the Old Drift during the older ice ages and the Young Drift during the latest glaciations – the Weichselian in North Germany and ...
, by
dugout canoe A dugout canoe or simply dugout is a boat made from a hollowed-out tree. Other names for this type of boat are logboat and monoxylon. ''Monoxylon'' (''μονόξυλον'') (pl: ''monoxyla'') is Greek''mono-'' (single) + '' ξύλον xylon'' (tr ...
or a barge towed across with a steel cable. Rhodes' vision of a
Cape-Cairo railway The Cape to Cairo Railway is an unfinished project to create a railway line crossing from southern to northern Africa. It would have been the largest, and most important, railway of the continent. It was planned as a link between Cape Town i ...
drove plans for the first bridge across the Zambezi. He insisted it be built where the spray from the falls would fall on passing trains, so the site at the Second Gorge was chosen. (See the main article
Victoria Falls Bridge The Victoria Falls Bridge crosses the Zambezi River just below the Victoria Falls and is built over the Second Gorge of the falls. As the river forms the border between Zimbabwe and Zambia, the bridge links the two countries and has border post ...
for details.) From 1905 the railway offered accessible travel from as far as the
Cape A cape is a clothing accessory or a sleeveless outer garment of any length that hangs loosely and connects either at the neck or shoulders. They usually cover the back, shoulders, and arms. They come in a variety of styles and have been used th ...
in the south and from 1909, as far as the
Belgian Congo The Belgian Congo (, ; ) was a Belgian colonial empire, Belgian colony in Central Africa from 1908 until independence in 1960 and became the Republic of the Congo (Léopoldville). The former colony adopted its present name, the Democratic Repu ...
in the north. In 1904 the Victoria Falls Hotel was opened to accommodate visitors arriving on the new railway. The falls became an increasingly popular attraction during
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...
colonial rule of
Northern Rhodesia Northern Rhodesia was a British protectorate in Southern Africa, now the independent country of Zambia. It was formed in 1911 by Amalgamation (politics), amalgamating the two earlier protectorates of Barotziland-North-Western Rhodesia and North ...
(Zambia) and
Southern Rhodesia Southern Rhodesia was a self-governing British Crown colony in Southern Africa, established in 1923 and consisting of British South Africa Company (BSAC) territories lying south of the Zambezi River. The region was informally known as South ...
(Zimbabwe), with the town of
Victoria Falls Victoria Falls (Lozi language, Lozi: ''Mosi-oa-Tunya'', "Thundering Smoke/Smoke that Rises"; Tonga language (Zambia and Zimbabwe), Tonga: ''Shungu Namutitima'', "Boiling Water") is a waterfall on the Zambezi River, located on the border betwe ...
becoming the main tourist centre.


During independence movements

In 1964, Northern Rhodesia became the independent state of Zambia. The following year,
Rhodesia Rhodesia ( , ; ), officially the Republic of Rhodesia from 1970, was an unrecognised state, unrecognised state in Southern Africa that existed from 1965 to 1979. Rhodesia served as the ''de facto'' Succession of states, successor state to the ...
unilaterally declared independence. This was not recognised by Zambia, the United Kingdom nor the vast majority of states and led to
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...
-mandated sanctions. In response to the emerging crisis, in 1966 Zambia restricted or stopped border crossings. It did not re-open the border completely until 1980. The
Rhodesian Bush War The Rhodesian Bush War, also known as the Rhodesian Civil War, Second as well as the Zimbabwe War of Independence, was a civil conflict from July 1964 to December 1979 in the List of states with limited recognition, unrecognised country U.D.I. ...
erupted on the southern side of the Zambezi from 1972 to 1980 with terrorist incursions from Zambia, Mozambique and Botswana. Visitor numbers began to drop, particularly on the Rhodesian side. Periodic Rhodesian military cross-border operations against guerrilla camps in Zambia, caused the Zambians to impose security measures including the stationing of soldiers to restrict access to the gorges and some parts of the falls. Zimbabwe's internationally recognized independence in 1980 brought comparative peace, and the 1980s witnessed renewed levels of tourism and the development of the region as a centre for adventure sports. Activities that gained popularity in the area include
whitewater rafting Rafting and whitewater rafting are recreational outdoor activities which use an inflatable raft to navigate a river or other body of water. This is often done on whitewater or different degrees of rough water. Dealing with risk is often a ...
in the gorges,
bungee jumping Bungee jumping (), also spelled bungy jumping, is an activity that involves a person jumping from a great height while connected to a large elastic cord. The launching pad is usually erected on a tall structure such as a building or crane, a ...
from the bridge,
game fishing Game fish, sport fish or quarry refer to popular fish species pursued by recreational fishing, recreational fishers (typically angling, anglers), and can be freshwater fish, freshwater or saltwater fish. Game fish can be fish as food, eaten aft ...
,
horse riding Equestrianism (from Latin , , , 'horseman', 'horse'), commonly known as horse riding ( Commonwealth English) or horseback riding (American English), includes the disciplines of riding, driving, and vaulting. This broad description includes the ...
,
kayaking Kayaking is the use of a kayak for moving over water. It is distinguished from canoeing by the sitting position of the paddler and the number of blades on the paddle. A kayak is a low-to-the-water, canoe-like boat in which the paddler sits fac ...
, e-biking, and sightseeing flights over the falls.United Nations Environment Programme: Protected Areas and World Heritage World Conservation Monitoring Centre
Website accessed 1 March 2007.


Tourism in recent years

By the end of the 1990s, almost 400,000 people were visiting the falls annually, and this was expected to rise to over a million in the next decade. Unlike the game parks, Victoria Falls has more Zimbabwean and Zambian visitors than international tourists; the attraction is accessible by bus and train, and is therefore comparatively inexpensive to reach. The numbers of visitors to the Zimbabwean side of the falls has historically been much higher than the number visiting the Zambian side, due to the greater development of the visitor facilities there. However, the number of tourists visiting Zimbabwe began to decline in the early 2000s as political tensions between supporters and opponents of president
Robert Mugabe Robert Gabriel Mugabe (; ; 21 February 1924 – 6 September 2019) was a Zimbabwean revolutionary and politician who served as Prime Minister of Zimbabwe from 1980 to 1987 and then as President from 1987 to 2017. He served as Leader of th ...
increased. In 2006, hotel occupancy on the Zimbabwean side hovered at around 30%, while the Zambian side was near capacity, with rates in top hotels reaching
US$ The United States dollar (Currency symbol, symbol: Dollar sign, $; ISO 4217, currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and International use of the U.S. dollar, several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introdu ...
630 per night.At African Waterfall, Visitors Confront A Tale of Two Cities
" Trofimov, Y. ''
The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...
''. 29 December 2006.
The rapid development has prompted the
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...
to consider revoking the falls' status as a
World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...
. In addition, problems of waste disposal and a lack of effective management of the falls' environment are a concern. A famous feature is the naturally formed "Devil's Pool", an infinity pool that sits on the lip of Victoria Falls, on the Zambian side, along the western tip of Livingstone Island. When the river flow is at a certain level, usually between September and December, a rock barrier forms an eddy with minimal current, allowing adventurous swimmers to splash around in relative safety in front of the point where the water cascades over the falls.


Natural environment


National parks

The two national parks at the falls are relatively small– Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park is ''National Parks and Nature Reserves of Zambia''
World Institute for Conservation and Environment
.
and
Victoria Falls National Park Victoria Falls National Park in north-western Zimbabwe protects the south and east bank of the Zambezi River in the area of the world-famous Victoria Falls. It extends along the Zambezi river from the larger Zambezi National Park about 6  ...
is . However, next to the latter on the southern bank is the Zambezi National Park, extending west along the river. Animals can move between the two Zimbabwean parks and can also reach Matetsi Safari Area,
Kazuma Pan National Park Kazuma Pan National Park is situated in Zimbabwe's extreme north-western corner, lying on the Botswana border a short distance north-west of Hwange National Park. Some 77,345 acres (313 km2) in area, it provides one of Zimbabwe's few areas o ...
and
Hwange National Park Hwange National Park (formerly Wankie Game Reserve) is the largest natural reserve in Zimbabwe. It is around 14,600 sq km in area. It lies in the northwest of the country, just off the main road between Bulawayo and Victoria Falls. The nearest ...
to the south. On the Zambian side, fences and the outskirts of Livingstone tend to confine most animals to the Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park. In addition fences put up by lodges in response to crime restrict animal movement.S Hanyona: "Zambia's Ecotourism Venture Butted by Ecotroubles."
5 March 2002. ENS website accessed 9 March 2007.
On Botswana’s side of the border,
Chobe National Park Chobe National Park is Botswana's first national park, and also the most Biodiversity, 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. ...
is a short distance to travel to and is a popular location for a day trip for many tourists visiting Victoria Falls for extended stays. It offers more diverse flora and fauna than Hwange National Park. In 2004 a separate group of police called the Tourism Police was started. They are commonly seen around the main tourist areas, and can be identified by their uniforms with yellow reflective bibs.


Vegetation

Riverine forest with palm trees lines the banks and islands above the falls. The most notable aspect of the area's vegetation though is the
rainforest Rainforests are forests characterized by a closed and continuous tree Canopy (biology), canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforests can be generally classified as tropi ...
nurtured by the spray from the falls, containing plants rare for the area such as pod mahogany,
ebony Ebony is a dense black/brown hardwood, coming from several species in the genus '' Diospyros'', which also includes the persimmon tree. A few ''Diospyros'' species, such as macassar and mun ebony, are dense enough to sink in water. Ebony is fin ...
, ivory palm, wild date palm, batoko plum and creepers and lianas. Outside the riparian zone,
mopane ''Colophospermum mopane'', commonly called mopane, mopani, butterfly tree, turpentine tree, or balsam tree, is a tree in the legume family (Fabaceae), that grows in hot, dry, low-lying areas, in elevation, in parts of Southern Africa. The tree ...
woodland savannah predominates in the area, with smaller areas of
miombo Miombo woodland is a tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome (in the World Wide Fund for Nature scheme) located in central and southern tropical Africa. It includes three woodland savanna ecoregions (listed below) chara ...
and
Rhodesian teak ''Baikiaea plurijuga'', known as African teak, Mukusi, Rhodesian teak, Zambian teak, or Zambesi redwood, is a species of Afrotropical tree from the legume family, the Fabaceae from southern Africa. The genus is named for William Balfour Baikie ( ...
woodland and shrubland savannah. Vegetation has suffered in recent droughts, and so have the animals that depend on it, particularly antelope.


Wildlife

The national parks contain abundant wildlife including sizeable populations of
African bush elephant The African bush elephant (''Loxodonta africana''), also known as the African savanna elephant, is a species of elephant native to sub-Saharan Africa. It is one of three extant elephant species and, along with the African forest elephant, one ...
,
Cape buffalo The African buffalo (''Syncerus caffer)'' is a large sub-Saharan African bovine. The adult African buffalo's horns are its characteristic feature: they have fused bases, forming a continuous bone shield across the top of the head, referred to ...
,
giraffe The giraffe is a large Fauna of Africa, African even-toed ungulate, hoofed mammal belonging to the genus ''Giraffa.'' It is the Largest mammals#Even-toed Ungulates (Artiodactyla), tallest living terrestrial animal and the largest ruminant on ...
,
Grant's zebra Grant's zebra (''Equus quagga boehmi'') is the smallest of the seven subspecies of the plains zebra. This subspecies represents the zebra form of the Serengeti- Mara ecosystem and others across central Africa. Distribution This subspecies is di ...
, and a variety of
antelope The term antelope refers to numerous extant or recently extinct species of the ruminant artiodactyl family Bovidae that are indigenous to most of Africa, India, the Middle East, Central Asia, and a small area of Eastern Europe. Antelopes do ...
.
Lions The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large cat of the genus ''Panthera'', native to Sub-Saharan Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; a short, rounded head; round ears; and a dark, hairy tuft at the tip of its tail. It is se ...
,
African leopard The African leopard (''Panthera pardus pardus'') is the nominate subspecies of the leopard, native to many countries in Africa. It is widely distributed in most of sub-Saharan Africa, but the historical range has been Habitat fragmentation, fragm ...
s and
South African cheetah The Southeast African cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus jubatus'') is the nominate cheetah subspecies native to East and Southern Africa. The Southern African cheetah lives mainly in the lowland areas and deserts of the Kalahari, the savannahs of Ok ...
s are only occasionally seen.
Vervet monkey The vervet monkey (''Chlorocebus pygerythrus''), or simply vervet, is an Old World monkey of the family Cercopithecidae native to Africa. The term "vervet" is also used to refer to all the members of the genus '' Chlorocebus''. The five distin ...
s and
baboons Baboons are primates comprising the genus ''Papio'', one of the 23 genera of Old World monkeys, in the family Cercopithecidae. There are six species of baboon: the hamadryas baboon, the Guinea baboon, the olive baboon, the yellow baboon ...
are common.
Southern white rhinoceros The southern white rhinoceros or southern white rhino (''Ceratotherium simum simum'') is one of the two subspecies of the white rhinoceros (the other being the much rarer northern white rhinoceros). It is the most common and widespread subspecies ...
es inhabit Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park.
Black rhinoceros The black rhinoceros (''Diceros bicornis''), also called the black rhino or the hooked-lip rhinoceros, is a species of rhinoceros native to East Africa, East and Southern Africa, including Angola, Botswana, Eswatini, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Moza ...
es roam Victoria Falls Private Game Reserve. The river above the falls contains large populations of
hippopotamus The hippopotamus (''Hippopotamus amphibius;'' ; : hippopotamuses), often shortened to hippo (: hippos), further qualified as the common hippopotamus, Nile hippopotamus and river hippopotamus, is a large semiaquatic mammal native to sub-Sahar ...
and
Nile crocodile The Nile crocodile (''Crocodylus niloticus'') is a large crocodilian native to freshwater habitats in Africa, where it is present in 26 countries. It is widely distributed in sub-Saharan Africa, occurring mostly in the eastern, southern, and ce ...
. Elephant herds cross the river in the dry season at particular crossing points.
Klipspringer The klipspringer (; ''Oreotragus oreotragus'') is a small antelope found in eastern and southern Africa. The sole member of its genus and subfamily/tribe, the klipspringer was first described by German zoologist Eberhard August Wilhelm von Zi ...
s,
honey badger The honey badger (''Mellivora capensis''), also known as the ratel ( or ), is a mammal widely distributed across Africa, Southwest Asia, and the Indian subcontinent. It is the only living species in both the genus ''Mellivora'' and the subfami ...
s,
lizard Lizard is the common name used for all Squamata, squamate reptiles other than snakes (and to a lesser extent amphisbaenians), encompassing over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most Island#Oceanic isla ...
s and clawless otters can be glimpsed in the gorges, but they are mainly known for 35 species of raptors. The Taita falcon,
Verreaux's eagle Verreaux's eagle (''Aquila verreauxii'') is a large, mostly African, bird of prey. It is also called the black eagle, especially in southern Africa, not to be confused with the black eagle (''Ictinaetus malayensis'') of south and southeast Asia. ...
,
peregrine falcon The peregrine falcon (''Falco peregrinus''), also known simply as the peregrine, is a Cosmopolitan distribution, cosmopolitan bird of prey (raptor) in the family (biology), family Falconidae renowned for its speed. A large, Corvus (genus), cro ...
and
augur buzzard The augur buzzard (''Buteo augur'') is a fairly large African bird of prey. This species is distinct in typical adult plumage for its blackish back, whitish underside and orange-red tail, while juvenile augur buzzards are generally rather brown i ...
breed there. Above the falls,
heron Herons are long-legged, long-necked, freshwater and coastal birds in the family Ardeidae, with 75 recognised species, some of which are referred to as egrets or bitterns rather than herons. Members of the genus ''Botaurus'' are referred to as bi ...
s,
African fish eagle The African fish eagle (''Icthyophaga vocifer'') or the African sea eagle is a large species of eagle found throughout sub-Saharan Africa wherever large bodies of open water with an abundant food supply occur. It is the national bird of Malawi, ...
s and numerous kinds of
waterfowl Anseriformes is an order of birds also known as waterfowl that comprises about 180 living species of birds in three families: Anhimidae (three species of screamers), Anseranatidae (the magpie goose), and Anatidae, the largest family, which i ...
are common.


Fish

The river is home to 39 species of
fish A fish (: fish or fishes) is an aquatic animal, aquatic, Anamniotes, anamniotic, gill-bearing vertebrate animal with swimming fish fin, fins and craniate, a hard skull, but lacking limb (anatomy), limbs with digit (anatomy), digits. Fish can ...
below the falls and 84 species above it. This illustrates the effectiveness of the falls as a dividing barrier between the upper and lower Zambezi.


Effects of climate change

In February 2020,
National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly ''The National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as ''Nat Geo'') is an American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. The magazine was founded in 1888 as a scholarly journal, nine ...
highlighted the threat to the falls from
extreme weather Extreme weather includes unexpected, unusual, severe weather, severe, or unseasonal weather; weather at the extremes of the historical distribution—the range that has been seen in the past. Extreme events are based on a location's recorded weat ...
conditions. Rising temperatures make the region hotter and drier. There is substantial water flow variability from year to year, with a significant drop in the general trend of water flow in September, October, November and December. This is particularly pronounced in drought years, which are becoming more frequent and intense. Such occurrences have affected the aesthetics of the waterfalls, and there are fears that Victoria Falls might join other World Heritage sites categorised as last-chance destinations. Recognition of the risks to the falls has sparked great debate among those in the tourism industry in both Zambia and Zimbabwe. Many experts in the region dismiss the story as ill-researched and irresponsible journalism. They do not deny
climate change Present-day climate change includes both global warming—the ongoing increase in Global surface temperature, global average temperature—and its wider effects on Earth's climate system. Climate variability and change, Climate change in ...
and the impact it is having on the amount of water that cascades over the falls, but they argue the narrative is incomplete.


Statistics


See also

*
List of waterfalls This list of notable waterfalls of the world is sorted by continent, then country, then province, state or territory. A waterfall is included if it is at least tall and has an existing Wikipedia article, or it is considered historically sig ...
*
List of waterfalls by flow rate This list of waterfalls by flow rate includes all waterfalls which are known to have an average flow rate or discharge of at least . The waterfalls in this list are those for which there is verifiable information, and the list should not be assu ...
*
List of waterfalls of Zambia This is a list of waterfalls in Zambia. See also * List of waterfalls * Tourism in Zambia {{Africa topic, List of waterfalls of * Zambia Waterfalls A waterfall is any point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a ...
*
Batoka Gorge Hydroelectric Power Station The proposed Batoka Gorge Hydroelectric Power Station is a 2400 MW hydroelectric power station, planned for the Zambezi River on the international border between Zambia and Zimbabwe. Location The proposed power station will be located on the Zam ...
* 2018–19 Southern Africa drought


References


External links

* * * * {{Authority control Articles containing video clips Block waterfalls Canyons and gorges of Africa First 100 IUGS Geological Heritage Sites Geography of Matabeleland North Province Geography of Southern Province, Zambia International waterfalls Livingstone, Zambia Tourist attractions in Matabeleland North Province Tourist attractions in Southern Province, Zambia Tourist attractions in Zambia Tourist attractions in Zimbabwe Waterfalls of Zambia Waterfalls of Zimbabwe World Heritage Sites in Zambia World Heritage Sites in Zimbabwe Zambezi River Zambia–Zimbabwe border