Why in news
Hippopotamuses were stuck in a dry channel in the Okavango Delta, Botswana
A drought across southern Africa has been driven mostly by the El Nino weather pattern, not climate change
Zambia, Zimbabwe and Malawi have declared a national disaster over the severe dry spell that started in January and has devastated the agricultural sector, decimating crops and pastures
Okavango Delta
The Okavango Delta in Botswana is a vast inland delta formed where the Okavango River reaches a tectonic trough at an altitude of 930–1,000 m in the central part of the endorheic basin of the Kalahari.
It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site as one of the few interior delta systems that do not flow into a sea or ocean, with a wetland system that is largely intact.
All the water reaching the delta is ultimately evaporated and transpired.
Okavango Delta
Each year, about 11 cubic kilometres of water spreads over the 6,000–15,000 km2 area.
Some flood waters drain into Lake Ngami.
The area was once part of Lake Makgadikgadi, an ancient lake that had mostly dried up by the early Holocene.
The Moremi Game Reserve is on the eastern side of the delta
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