The Congo-Nile Divide region of Rwanda and Burundi is a mountainous area in the southern section of the Congo-Nile Divide, to the east of the Albertine Rift. The region includes the Nyungwe and Kibira national parks. [1] The Bugoyi people live in the region. [2]
The region of the divide is mountainous, with some peaks over 10,000 feet (3,000 m) high. Lake Kivu lies to the west of the mountains. [3] The east of the divide slopes down to the central plateau of Rwanda, with elevations of 5,000 to 6,000 feet (1,500 to 1,800 m). [4]
The Congo-Nile Divide Trail runs through the area, ending on the Butare-Cyangugu road, about 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) west of Uwinka. [5] The Congo-Nile Divide Trail is 42.2 kilometres (26.2 mi) long. Created in 2007, it runs along a ridge that forms part of the divide. [6]
There are bracken fields, sedge marshes and open fields, and primary, secondary and bamboo forests. Flora include ericaceous shrub and wildflowers. [6] A total of 1,344 plant species have been recorded, including 187 endemic species and 18 species in the threatened category (CR, EN, and VU under the IUCN Red List (2010)).
123 mammal species are reported from the region, of which 19 are endemic and 14 are threatened. There has been large loss of animal species through poaching and hunting for bushmeat. Buffalo and elephants have been extirpated in the area. Chimpanzee, mountain monkey, owl-faced monkey, and more than 400 Angolan colobus have also been reported. [1]
Reptiles are also reported to consist of 43 species, including 11 endemic species. The Divide is also a rich bird area with as many as 367 species reported, with 29 of them being endemic, and with seven species in the threatened category; some of the species of note are the Rwenzori turaco, red-collared mountain babbler and Kivu ground thrush. [1]
The Great Rift Valley is a series of contiguous geographic trenches, approximately 7,000 kilometres (4,300 mi) in total length, that runs from Lebanon in Asia to Mozambique in Southeast Africa. While the name continues in some usages, it is rarely used in geology as it is considered an imprecise merging of separate though related rift and fault systems.
Rwanda is located in East Africa, to the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, at the co-ordinates 2°00′S30°0′E.
Lake Kivu is one of the African Great Lakes. It lies on the border between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda, and is in the Albertine Rift, the western branch of the East African Rift. Lake Kivu empties into the Ruzizi River, which flows southwards into Lake Tanganyika.
The African Great Lakes are a series of lakes constituting the part of the Rift Valley lakes in and around the East African Rift. They include Lake Victoria, the second-largest fresh water lake in the world by area, Lake Tanganyika, the world's second-largest freshwater lake by volume and depth, and Lake Malawi, the world's eighth-largest fresh water lake by area. Collectively, they contain 31,000 km3 of water, which is more than either Lake Baikal or the North American Great Lakes. This total constitutes about 25% of the planet's unfrozen surface fresh water. The large rift lakes of Africa are the ancient home of great biodiversity, and 10% of the world's fish species live in this region.
Volcanoes National Park is a national park in northwestern Rwanda. It covers 160 km2 (62 sq mi) of rainforest and encompasses five of the eight volcanoes in the Virunga Mountains, namely Karisimbi, Bisoke, Muhabura, Gahinga and Sabyinyo. It borders Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Mgahinga Gorilla National Park in Uganda. It is home to the mountain gorilla and the golden monkey, and was the base for the primatologist Dian Fossey.
Virunga National Park is a national park in the Albertine Rift Valley in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It was created in 1925. In elevation, it ranges from 680 m (2,230 ft) in the Semliki River valley to 5,109 m (16,762 ft) in the Rwenzori Mountains. From north to south it extends approximately 300 km (190 mi), largely along the international borders with Uganda and Rwanda in the east. It covers an area of 8,090 km2 (3,120 sq mi).
The Ruzizi is a river, 117 kilometres (73 mi) long, that flows from Lake Kivu to Lake Tanganyika in Central Africa, descending from about 1,500 metres (4,900 ft) to about 770 metres (2,530 ft) above sea level over its length. The steepest gradients occur over the first 40 kilometres (25 mi), where hydroelectric dams have been built. Further downstream, the Ruzizi Plain, the floor of the Western Rift Valley, has gentle hills, and the river flows into Lake Tanganyika through a delta, with one or two small channels splitting off from the main channel.
The Nyungwe Forest is located in southwestern Rwanda, on the border with Burundi, where it is contiguous with the Kibira National Park to the south, and Lake Kivu and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west. The Nyungwe rainforest is probably the best preserved montane rainforest in Africa. It is located in the watershed between the basin of the river Congo to the west and the basin of the river Nile to the east. From the east side of the Nyungwe forest comes also one of the branches of the Nile sources.
Mgahinga Gorilla National Park is a national park in southwestern Uganda. It was created in 1991 and covers an area of 33.9 km2 (13.1 sq mi).
The Albertine Rift is the western branch of the East African Rift, covering parts of Uganda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania. It extends from the northern end of Lake Albert to the southern end of Lake Tanganyika. The geographical term includes the valley and the surrounding mountains.
The Albertine Rift montane forests is a tropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion in east-central Africa. The ecoregion covers the mountains of the northern Albertine Rift, and is home to distinct Afromontane forests with high biodiversity.
Tourism in Rwanda is the largest source of foreign exchange earnings in Rwanda and was projected to grow at a rate of 25% every year from 2013-18. The sector is the biggest contributor to the national export strategy. Total revenues generated from the sector in 2014 alone was USD 305 millions. The sector has also attracted direct foreign investments with major international hotel brands setting up shop in the country including Marriot Hotels & Resorts, Radisson Blu, Park Inn by Radisson, Sheraton Hotels and Resorts, Protea Hotels by Marriott, Golden Tulip Hotels, and Zinc. With its new world-class convention center Rwanda is set to become a regional and international conference hub owing to ever improving conference facilities, an excellent and expanding transportation network, and straightforward immigration procedures such as the ability for online visa applications, visa-at-gate policy for all Africans, and a one tourist visa policy for the EAC.
The wildlife of Burundi is composed of its flora and fauna. The small, landlocked country is home to 2,950 species of plants, 596 birds, 163 species of mammals, 52 species of reptiles, 56 species of amphibians, and 215 fish species. The wildlife has been drastically reduced in recent years, mainly on account of intense population pressure, conversion of large areas of forest into agricultural land, and extensive livestock farming. The protected area encompasses little more than 5% of the total area of the country.
The Albertine owlet is a small species of small owl in the family Strigidae, native to the Albertine Rift montane forests.
The wildlife of Rwanda comprising its flora and fauna, in prehistoric times, consisted of montane forest in one third the territory of present-day Rwanda. However, natural vegetation is now mostly restricted to the three National Parks and four small forest reserves, with terraced agriculture dominating the rest of the country.
The Rukarara River is a river in western Rwanda that is a tributary of the Mwogo River, in turn a tributary of the Nyabarongo River. It is the most distant headwater of the Nile.
The Itombwe Mountains are a range of mountains in the South Kivu province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). They run along the west shore of the northern part of Lake Tanganyika. They contain a vast area of contiguous montane forest and are home to a rich diversity of wildlife.
The Congo-Nile Divide is the continental divide that separates the drainage basins of the Nile and Congo rivers. It is about 2,000 kilometres (1,200 mi) long.
The Kahuzi-Biega National Park is a protected area near Bukavu town in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is situated near the western bank of Lake Kivu and the Rwandan border. Established in 1970 by the Belgian photographer and conservationist Adrien Deschryver, the park is named after two dormant volcanoes, Mount Kahuzi and Mount Biega, which are within its limits. With an area of 6,000 square kilometres (2,300 sq mi), Kahuzi-Biega is one of the biggest national parks in the country. Set in both mountainous and lowland terrain, it is one of the last refuges of the rare species of Eastern lowland gorilla, an endangered category under the IUCN Red List. The park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, inscribed in 1980 for its unique biodiversity of rainforest habitat and its eastern lowland gorillas. In 1997, it was listed on the List of World Heritage in Danger because of the political instability of the region, an influx of refugees, and increasing wildlife exploitation.