Lake Kyoga

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Lake Kyoga

2002 NASA MODIS satellite picture. White spots are clouds.

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Lake Kyoga

Coordinates 1°30′N 33°0′ECoordinates: 1°30′N 33°0′E

Type Polymictic

Basin Lakes

Primary inflows Victoria Nile

Primary outflows Victoria Nile

Catchment area 75,000 km2 (29,000 sq mi)

Basin countries Uganda

Max. length 200 km (120 mi)

Surface area 1,720 km2 (660 sq mi)

Max. depth 5.7 m (19 ft)

Surface elevation 1,033 m (3,389 ft)

Settlements Soroti
[1][2]
References

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Lake Kyoga (also spelled Kioga) is a large shallow lake in Uganda, about 1,720 km2
(660 sq mi)[1] in area and at an elevation of 1,033 metres.[2] The Victoria Nile flows
through the lake on its way from Lake Victoria to Lake Albert. The main inflow from Lake
Victoria is regulated by the Nalubaale Power Station in Jinja. Another source of water is
the Mount Elgon region on the border between Uganda and Kenya. While Lake Kyoga is
part of the African Great Lakes system, it is not itself considered a great lake.

The lake reaches a depth of about 5.7 metres, and

most of it is less than 4 metres deep. Areas that
are less than 3 metres deep are completely
covered by water lilies, while much of the swampy
shoreline is covered with papyrus and the invasive
water hyacinth. The papyrus also forms floating
islands that drift between a number of small
permanent islands. Extensive wetlands fed by a
complex system of streams and rivers surround
the lakes. Nearby Lake Kwania is a smaller lake
but deeper.

Rivers and lakes of Uganda.

Click image to enlarge.

Fauna and fishing

Nile crocodiles are numerous, as is aquatic fauna.
There are at least 60 haplochromine cichlid species, as
well as a smaller number of other fish species like Lake
Victoria sardine and marbled lungfish. Many of the
haplochromine cichlids are endemic, but very closely
related to the Lake Victoria species,[3][4] and showing a
similar level of diversity in terms of feeding.[5] The
Kyoga cichlids include both described species like Haplochromis latifasciatus is one of
Haplochromis latifasciatus and H. worthingtoni, and the many cichlid species found
undescribed like H. sp. "Kyoga flameback" and H. sp. only in the Lake Kyoga system
"ruby".[6] As in Lake Victoria, the Kyoga cichlids have
been decimated by the introduced Nile perch and some species are already extinct.
Because Kyoga generally is shallow and swampy, some subsections—"satellite lakes"—
are isolated to various degrees from the main lake. The number of surviving
haplochromine cichlids in each subsection is directly related to the status of the Nile
perch. Despite being the largest by far, less than 50 haplochromine species survive in the
main section where the Nile perch is common. In comparison, the much smaller satellite
lakes Lemwa, Nyaguo and Nawampasa lack Nile perch, but at least 50 haplochromine
species survive in each of the first two, and at least 60 in the last. Conversely, the small
satellite lakes Nakuwa and Nyasala where Nile perch is abundant have less than 30 and
5 surviving haplochromines respectively.[3][4] This also means that fishing in the Lake

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Kyoga system gradually has shifted from once targeting many native species, to now
primarily targeting the native Lake Victoria sardine, the introduced Nile perch and
introduced Nile tilapia[7] (the two native tilapias, the Singida and Victoria, have become
very rare, except in some satellite lakes).[4] In 2006, only 4% of catches were
haplochromine cichlids.[7]

References
1. ^ a b "Lake Kyoga". World Lakes Database. 1999. Archived from the original on 4
February 2015. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
2. ^ a b Lake Kyoga at the Encyclopædia Britannica
3. ^ a b Green, J. (2009). "The Kyoga Catchment". In H.J. Dumont (ed.). The Nile.
Monographiae Biologicae. Vol. 89. Springer Science + Business Media B.V.
pp. 205–214. ISBN 978-1-4020-9725-6.
4. ^ a b c Mwanja, W.W.; A.S. Armoudlian; S.B. Wandera; L. Kaufman; L. Wu; G.C.
Booton; P.A. Fuerst (2001). "The bounty of minor lakes: the role of small satellite
water bodies in evolution and conservation of fishes in the Lake Victoria Region,
East Africa". Hydrobiologia. 458 (1): 55–62. doi:10.1023/A:1013167725047.
5. ^ Mbabazi, D.; R. Ogutu-Ohwayo; S.B. Wandera; Y. Kiziito (2004). "Fish species
and trophic diversity of haplochromine cichlids in the Kyoga satellite lakes
(Uganda)". African Journal of Ecology. 42 (1). doi:10.1111/j.0141-
6707.2004.00492.x.
6. ^ Bauman, K. "African Cichlids from the Lake Victoria basin". Retrieved 25
September 2019.
7. ^ a b Witte, F.; M. de Graaf; O.C. Mkumbo; A.I. El-Moghraby; F.A. Sibbing (2009).
"Fisheries in the Nile System". In H.J. Dumont (ed.). The Nile. Monographiae
Biologicae. Vol. 89. Springer Science + Business Media B.V. pp. 723–748.
ISBN 978-1-4020-9725-6.

DWD (2002) El Niño preparedness for Lake Kyoga and other flood prone areas of
Uganda. Directorate of Water Development. Ministry of Water, Lands and
Environment, Entebbe, Uganda.
ILM (2004) Support to the Management of Sudd Blockage on Lake Kyoga.
Produced for the Integrated Lake Management Project by Environmental Impact
Assessment Centre of Finland, EIA Ltd. (online PDF version)
Twongo, T. (2001) The Fisheries and environment of Kyoga Lakes. Fisheries
Resources Research Institute (FIRRI), Jinja, Uganda.

External links
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?
title=Lake_Kyoga&oldid=1096014994"

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