KARIBA LAKE

Primary inflows Kagera River

Primary outflows             White Nile (river) (known as the "Victoria Nile" as it flows out of the lake)

Catchment area                184,000 km2 (71,000 sq mi)

238,900 km2 (92,200 sq mi) basin

Basin countries Tanzania

Uganda

Kenya

Max. length        337 km (209 mi)

Max. width         250 km (160 mi)

Surface area       68,800 km2 (26,600 sq mi)

Average depth  40 m (130 ft)

Max. depth        83 m (272 ft)

Water volume   2,750 km3 (660 cu mi)

Shore length1    3,440 km (2,140 mi)

Surface elevation             1,133 m (3,717 ft)

Islands  84 (Ssese Islands, Uganda)

Location               African Great Lakes

Coordinates       1°S 33°ECoordinates: 1°S 33°E

Primary inflows Kagera River

Primary outflows             White Nile river known as the "Victoria Nile" as it flows out of the lake

Catchment area                184,000 km2 71,000 sq mi

238,900 km2 92,200 sq mi basin

Basin countries Tanzania

Uganda

Kenya

Max. length        337 km 209 mi

Max. width         250 km 160 mi

Surface area       68,800 km2 26,600 sq mi

Average depth  40 m 130 ft

Max. depth        83 m 272 ft

Water volume   2,750 km3 660 cu mi

Shore length1    3,440 km 2,140 mi

Surface elevation             1,133 m 3,717 ft

                                      Lake Victoria during its geological history, went through changes ranging from its present shallow depression, through to what may have been a series of much smaller lakes. Geological cores taken from its bottom show Lake Victoria has dried up completely at least three times since it formed. These drying cycles are probably related to past ice ages, which were times when precipitation declined globally. Lake Victoria last dried out 17,300 years ago, and it refilled beginning about 14,700 years ago. Geologically, Lake Victoria is relatively young – about 400,000 years old – and it formed when westward-flowing rivers were dammed by an upthrown crustal block.

This geological history probably contributed to the dramatic cichlid speciation that characterises its ecology, as well as that of other African Great Lakes, although some researchers dispute this, arguing while Lake Victoria was at its lowest between 18,000 and 14,000 years ago, and it dried out at least once during that time, there is no evidence of remnant ponds or marshes persisting within the desiccated basin. If such features existed, then they would have been small, shallow, turbid, and/or saline, and therefore markedly different from the lake to which today's species are adapted.

The shallowness of Lake Victoria, its limited river inflow, and its large surface area compared to its volume make it vulnerable to the effects of climate changes.