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CICHLIDS By: Gatekeeper |
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This central-African lake
is more than 670 km long with a maximum width of 80 km It is an
unusually long and Only the northern and southern states provide some form of infrastructure. Burundi has a tarred road from the capital Bujumbura to Nyanca Lac in the south. The capital offers various types of accommodation, although these may not always be ideal. The tension and civil war between the Tutsis and the Hutus is still a great problem. Zambia is in a developing
phase. The country is politically stable and tourists receive a warm
welcome everywhere. A few lodges around the lake have started operation
again and more accommodation has been added. Aquarists and divers should
visit the Kalambo Fall Lodge, which is found about 18 km northeast of
Mpulungu. Visitors will not only receive scuba bottles and boats, but
also have the chance to see Toby Veall's new collection station, Rift
Valley Tropicals Ltd. He has built a professional holding station. The
two lodges, Kasaba Bay Lodge and Ndole Bay Lodge, have been renovated
and are now joined by two other lodges at Nkamba Bay and Isanga Bay.
South of Mpulungu we find the modestly designed Tanganyika Lodge. The villages along the
shore can be reached on the Liemba, an old German ferry, which was built
at the beginning of this century. Meanwhile, a new passenger ferry is in
operation; The only disadvantage is that, once you have set foot on
land, you are stuck there for about 3-4 days. The hotels have a rather
simple style. Along the shore of Zaire, the accommodation consists mostly of small, privately operated huts. Even so, travelling to these places is difficult, as the boats have a very irregular schedule. When is the best time to
travel? February, March, and April are being governed by the rains.
Strong rainfalls occur regularly in these areas. The high water level in
the rivers will often considerably reduce the visibility under water
near the areas of the river mouth. The mosquitos are thriving at this
time of year; and the vegetation is flowering in tropical abundance.
During June, July and August it gets cooler around the lake. The water
temperature will vary between 23 C and 24 C, and the air temperature
becomes more bearable. In some areas, there may be algae blooms,
otherwise, the water is quite clear. The best visibility under water can
be enjoyed between September and November. During these months it is
already very hot and the rainy season is Depending on season and location, the water in the lake may be rather transparent. Areas with rocky shores are usually much clearer than shallow banks with sandy to rocky substrate or muddy sediment. During the rainy season, the rivers will often carry a lot of suspended solids that can cloud whole bays. One example is the Kalambo that will often reduce the visibility tremendously after a strong rainfall. The visibility may be about 5-8 metres. Only a few km north of the Kalombo, in Tanzania, the conditions are excellent with visibility up to 20 metres. The fact that the conditions may be very different even on a small stretch of about 1 0 km, relates to different currents and winds. During the rainy season a strong northern wind pushes the sediments in the Kalombo south. Other larger rivers feeding into the lake are the Rusisi in the north of Burundi, the Malagarasi south of Kigoma in Tanzania and the Lukuga near Kalemie, that joins with the Lualaba and later with the Zaire River. Presumably, the aquarist will not be too interested in the visibility of Lake Tanganyika, but water quality parameters, such as the water temperature will be more interesting.
Besides the water temperature, the chemical composition of the water is notable. The water in Lake Tanganyika is rich in dissolved salts, and has a high carbonate hardness and total hardness. The carbonate hardness of the aquarium water should be kept at around 1 5 and the dGH values in the lake vary between 9 and 11 (Tetra test, measured by the author). The pH-value should be at least above neutral. pH measurements in Lake Tanganyika showed values exceeding pH 9 (Conrad, Micro-S\pHep +A 0.1, measured by the author). The fishes from Lake Tanganyika do not cope well with soft and acidic water, but are often tolerant to slightly higher or lower values than those found in the lake. However, one should aim to provide the most ideal conditions. Site designed by Gatekeeper. Best viewed under Internet Explorer 5.0 or above. All
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impressive
lake that lies 773 m above sea level. It is 1470 m deep, which makes it
the second deepest freshwater body on earth, only preceded by Lake
Baikal. It is bordered by Burundi in the north, Tanzania in the east,
Zambia in the south, and Zaire in the west.
about
to begin. It should be mentioned that the humidity is generally higher
in the northern areas of the lake than in the southern regions. In
Burundi and in the north of Zaire it may rain even during our summer
months. The equator is only 400km away which explains the differences
between the north and the south. In December and January the sun reaches
its highest point. While the south may be hot and dry, the north is warm
and humid. Yet, considering that the weather has been quite unreliable
during the past years exact predictions are problematic and rather
vague.
The
surface temperature varies from 23 C to 28 C, depending on the season.
Deeper down the water temperature is slightly lower. Due to the even
thermocline there is little exchange between the surface water and the
sulphur-rich water on the bottom. Below 200 metres, the dissolved oxygen
concentration is very low and higher forms of life can not he found
below 250 metres (Coulter, 1967).