Lake Nyasa ranks sixth in the top ten deepest lakes in the world, ninth in the ranking of the largest reservoirs by area. It is the third largest in Africa.
The tropical waters of Malawi (the second name of Nyasa) are characterized by a large number of fish. Such a variety of fish kingdom is not found in any other lake on the planet.
Origin of the lake basin of Lake Nyasa
Several million years - this is how experts estimate the age of such a reservoir as Lake Nyasa. The origin of the basin of reservoirs may be associated with a volcanic or tectonic fault, due to an exogenous factor, convergence of glaciers and other situations.
Lake Basin Malawi is the result of a tectonic rift. That is, the origin of Lake Nyasa is associated with a grandiose break in the earth's crust - the East African graben. As a rule, such lakes are the largest and deepest on the globe. Lake Nyasa is no exception.
The origin of the Malawi Basin, according to some sources, calls into question the continued existence of Africa. In the future, this fault may tear the continent from south to north along the line of the Great Lakes. This will change the slope of the land and the directionthe flow of water in rivers.
Discovery history
If it was not difficult for scientists to trace the origin of Lake Nyasa, then its discovery is not entirely clear. For Europeans, the history of this geographical feature began almost four hundred years ago. Then, in 1616, a Portuguese named Gaspar Bukarru, during his journey along the northeast of the lower reaches of the Zambezi River, which flows into the Indian Ocean, made the first discovery of Lake Nyasa. It turned out that, although Bucarro was the European discoverer of the reservoir, this did not receive wide publicity, and the information itself was buried in the Portuguese state archives. Therefore, for a long time the discovery of Lake Nyasa was attributed to the Scottish missionary and the great explorer of Africa - David Linvingston.
He, not knowing anything about the explorer Bukarru himself or about his discovery, in 1858 led a large expedition to the Zambezi basin. And on September 16, 1859, he announced the opening date of the southernmost of the Great Lakes of East Africa - Lake Nyasa. By the way, it is worth noting: if his attempt to climb up the Zambezi had not failed, then maybe he would not have started exploring the Shire River and would not have stumbled upon the “lake of stars”, as the explorer himself called Nyasa in his diaries.
Origin of the name of the lake
As already mentioned, one of the largest lakes in Africa has two names - Nyasa and Malawi.
"Nyasa" is consonant with the ancient name of Lake Victoria - "Nyantsa". These two words come from different but related languages that belong to one big language.family - Bantu. Hence their identical meaning - “big water” or “large-sized pond.”
The second name - Malawi - comes from the Malawi ethnic group, which makes up more than half of the population of the African republic of the same name. By the way, the latter owns most of the reservoir. But more on that later.
Due to the duality of the name on different maps, you can find both Lake Malawi and Lake Nyasa.
Geography
Where is Nyasa? The lake fills a crack in the earth's crust of the Rift Basin, which is located at the southernmost point of the Great Rift system. And the latter stretched between the outskirts of the Red Sea and the lower reaches of the Zambezi River.
Due to the peculiarities of the area where Nyasa is located, the lake has an elongated shape, reaching a length of 584 km and a width of 16 to 80 km in different places. The area of \u200b\u200bthe reservoir is 29,604 km, and it lies at an altitude of almost five hundred meters (more specifically, 472 m) above sea level.
Maximum depth of Lake Nyasa reaches 706 m, and the average depth is 292 m. This means that the deepest places are below sea level. The bottom of the lake does not have sharp drops, the depth indicators gradually increase from south to north.
The relief of the coastline is not monotonous. In some parts of the coast, mountains and peaks rise (from 1500 to 3000 m above sea level), in others the coastal plain spreads, which expands at the confluence of large rivers into this water body.
Lake Nyasa on the map of Africa can be found at the coordinates:11°52'S and 34°35'E.
Climate
The climate in the area where Lake Nyasa is located is subtropical and tends to change: in the mountains there is an invigorating coolness, in the Malawi Valley itself it is moderately warm, and in the Lower River area it is really hot.
Autumn and winter here are warm and mostly dry, with occasional showers. The minimum temperature mark at this time does not fall below +22 0С, and the maximum fluctuates at +25 0С. Yes, it's in the mountains. On the plain, the temperature is slightly, but higher: +27 … +30 0С.
At the end of spring - beginning of summer, the rainy season begins. The air temperature drops to +15 … +18 0С in the mountains, and +20 … +25 0С in the plains.
Hydrography
Lake Nyasa is fed by fourteen rivers. Among them, an important place is occupied by Bua (or, as it is sometimes translated, Bwa), Northern and Southern Rukaka, which carry their waters from the west, Dwanga, Ruhuhu - from the northeast, Songwe - from the northwest and Lilongwe - from the south. West.
The Shire River is the only outflow of the reservoir. It emerges from Malawi in the south and flows towards the Zambezi.
The great depth of the lake means no less volume of the Nyasa water mass - 8,400 km3. But, despite this, its flow is 63 km3 water per year. Of this volume, only 16% flows down the Shire River, the remaining 84% evaporates from the surface. Due to such features, the period of water renewal near the lake is quite long: according to experts, for a completerenewal of the water mass takes 114 years.
The salinity of Lake Nyasa is within 0.4 grams per 1 liter. The water itself is similar in composition to the water of Lake Tanganyika - the same hard and hard. Both reservoirs are characterized by the same temperature, which, depending on the season, ranges from 23.5 to 27.50 С.
Biology
Lake Malawi has one of the most diverse ecosystems of any freshwater body of water on the planet. It is inhabited by 500 to 1000 species of fish, represented by eleven families.
Each section, in separate bays and coasts has its own fish kingdom. But the most common inhabitants are lake cichlids, which are divided into two groups: pelagic and coastal. Pelagic cichlids are predatory fish, most of them live in the thickness of the species away from the coast. Their opposite is coastal cichdids. They come in a wide variety of sizes, shapes, feeding habits and behaviors.
But fish are not the only inhabitants of the waters of Lake Nyasa. The pond was chosen by crocodiles and African whooper eagles, inhabiting it in large numbers.
In general, the animal world can boast of no less diversity of its representatives. Buffaloes, rhinos, African elephants, zebras, antelopes, giraffes, predatory lions, cheetahs, leopards, hyenas and jackals roam around the lake. Such a multitude of wild animals is due to the versatility of nature. Here, savannas with green palm trees, airy acacias and majestic trees adjoin the mountainous tropical rainforests.baobabs.
Political distribution
There are three countries around the magnificent lake: Mozambique, Malawi and Tanzania. For a long time there was a dispute between the last two about who owns the waters of the reservoir. And all due to the fact that in different years the boundaries of ownership were defined differently: before the First World War, the line passed between the former Nyasaland and German East Africa, and after 1914, the lake was on the account of Malawi.
Sometimes these disputes led to clashes. But today the passions have subsided a little, and Malawi is no longer trying to restore its rights to the object we are considering. Although the disputed part does not officially recognize the belonging of the disputed part to Tanzania.
With all this, part of Nyasa and its basin is proportionally divided as follows: Malawi is subject to 68% of the reservoir, Tanzania - 25%, and Mozambique - only 7% of the basin.
Fishing
A large number of fish contributed to the formation of such a craft as fishing. The annual volume of fish caught here was five to seven thousand tons per year, of which 2/3 were caught by local African fishermen.
The development of fisheries has led to the emergence of small fishing villages on the shores of Lake Nyasa, who live solely by selling their catch. Of course, residents consume a small fraction of the prey themselves, but most of it is sold - the fish is smoked or dried and sold in this form, most often through intermediaries.
Most recently Lake Nyasabecame a place of industrial fishing, and not only by locals, but also by foreigners. This activity is completely market oriented. Fishermen, unlike African fishermen, have fully equipped modern vessels at their disposal.
Despite the great demand for fish, the deep-water part of the reservoir remains underused - improved equipment is needed to expand fishing areas, and therefore more money is needed. In the meantime, there is enough production closer to the coast, no one will be ready for extra expenses.
Tourism
The beauties of Lake Nyasa themselves could be the reason for the pilgrimage of tourists. But the fish kingdom has become not only a fishing specialization, but also a bait for divers.
Today there are special tours to Lake Malawi for those who like to dive and admire the beauty of the underwater world. How else? After all, such a variety of aquarium fish, along with water transparency (visibility is achieved at a distance of thirty meters), has no analogues in all of Africa.
Usually these tours include both day diving and night diving. In addition to swimming, hiking and transport walks along the picturesque shores of the lake are available for vacationers.
But not only divers come here. In 1934, some parts of the territory were declared forest reserves and bird sanctuaries, and in 1972 their area increased several times, which led to the creation of a national park. For example, ornithologists can make several discoveries by observing a large populationfishing eagles who love to hunt and nest on the shores of the lake.
The journey to Nyasa, like its history, will not leave anyone indifferent!
