• News
  • Lake Facts
  • About

Lake Scientist

Lake Tana Headwaters Feed Blue Nile River

0
  • by Daniel Kelly
  • — May 6, 2014

Water for Africa’s Blue Nile River starts in Lake Tana, the largest lake in Ethiopia, sitting at 1,418 square miles. From there, it drains south. At its end, it joins with the White Nile to create the Nile River, a valuable water resource that has been the source of conflict for centuries.

The Nile River is not as full as it once was, and neither is Lake Tana, whose water levels are controlled by a dam and hydro-power station. But its water still supports diverse populations of wildlife.

Lake-Tana-Ethiopia

Lake Tana, March 2006. (Credit: Wikimedia Commons User Andro96)

Seventy percent of the lake’s fish populations are endemic to it, including cyprinids and African stone loach. Lake Tana also supports a subspecies of the Nile tilapia. Together, these fish spur a thriving fish industry that harvests close to 1,500 tons of fish each year.

Few invertebrates live in Lake Tana. There are few mollusk species that inhabit it, as well as a type of freshwater sponge. Many wetland birds, like pelicans and the African darter, use the lake as a resting and feeding ground.

african-darter

African darter. (Credit: Hans Hillewaert via Wikimedia Commons)

Though it is small when compared to the larger lakes of Africa, Lake Tana is an important resource to Ethiopia and nations along the Nile. The freshwater lake was formed after a volcanic eruption blocked and reversed its historical drainage route.

Share

You may also like...

  • Volcanic Lake Database Launches 28 Years After Nyos Disaster
  • Dragon’s Breath Cave Holds the World’s Largest Underground Lake
  • Lake Victoria is the world’s second-largest freshwater lake by area, but new research shows it ran almost completely dry in a severe drought 16,000 years ago. Lake Victoria once ran dry, according to new research
  • Friday Five: Lakes of East Africa

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Time limit is exhausted. Please reload CAPTCHA.

BUY AT FONDRIEST.COM
New NexSens XB200 Data Buoy
  • Recent Posts

    • Long-Term Monitoring in the Chautauqua Lake WatershedJune 18, 2025
    • No Red Herrings: Data Driving the Largest Salt Marsh Restoration in the NE USAJune 16, 2025
    • Storm surge from Hurricane Irene in Greenwich, Connecticut.Research Brief: Evaluating a Novel Storm Surge Prediction Model on Lake OntarioJune 16, 2025
    • Carbon and Nutrient Monitoring in the Great Lakes Using Satellite ObservationsJune 11, 2025
    • Craig Hill places the Spotter Buoy into Lake Superior near Park Point Beach in Duluth, MN.Research Brief: Evaluating Wave Energy Availability in the Great Lakes and Blue Economy Opportunities June 9, 2025
  • Popular Tags

    Great Lakes research summary research research brief pollution Lake Erie Algae invasive species Product Spotlight lake research climate change lake science runoff nutrient-loading Lake Michigan dissolved oxygen international temperature Ohio eutrophication EPA toxic waters ice phosphorus algal blooms

©2025 Fondriest Environmental Inc. | Questions? Call 888.426.2151 or email customercare@fondriest.com