Kwilu River
{{For|the river in the Republic of the Congo |Kouilou-Niari River}}
{{Infobox river
| name = Kwilu River
| image = Crossing kwilu river.jpg
| image_size =
| image_alt =
| image_caption = May, 2003 - Villagers crossing the Kwilu river
| map = Kasai River Catchment OSM.png
| map_size = 250
| map_alt =
| map_caption = The Kwilu River in the Kasai catchment (center)
| source1_location =
| mouth_location =
| mouth_coordinates = {{coord|-3.385251|17.384491|format=dms|display=inline,title}}
| progression =
| subdivision_type1 = Countries
| subdivision_name1 = {{hlist|Angola|Democratic Republic of the Congo}}
| location =
| length = {{convert|965|km|abbr=on}}
| source1_elevation =
| mouth_elevation =
| discharge1_avg =
| basin_size =
| river_system = Kasaï River
| tributaries_left =
| tributaries_right =
}}
The Kwilu River (Portuguese: Rio Cuílo; French: Rivière Kwilu; Dutch: Kwilu Rivier) is a major river in both Lunda Norte Province and Lunda Sul Province in Angola as well as Kwilu Province, formerly known as Bandundu province, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to the city of Bandundu, where it joins the Kwango River just before this stream enters the Kasai River. In the DRC the river flows past the towns of Gungu, Kikwit, Bulungu, Bagata, Rutherfordia and Bandundu.{{sfn|Blaes|2008}}
Lusanga, formerly Leverville, lies at the location where the Kwenge River joins the Kwilu, between Kikwit and Bulungu.{{cite web
|url=http://www.basenji.org/BasenjiU/Owner/103History/TimePDFs/MBWaNaBasenjiWarrington.pdf
|title=M'Bwa na Basenji
|author=C.J. Warrington
|work=The Basenji
|date=May 1972
|access-date=2012-02-02}}
Characteristics
It is a meandering river. Near its mouth it is 950 meters wide. The bed material is sand.{{cite journal |last1=Hanibal Lemma |first1=and colleagues |title=Bedload transport measurements in the Gilgel Abay River, Lake Tana Basin, Ethiopia (Table 7) |journal=Journal of Hydrology |date=2019 |volume=577 |pages=123968 |doi=10.1016/j.jhydrol.2019.123968 |s2cid=199099061 }}
The river is about {{convert|965|km}} long. In the wet season the flooded area covers {{convert|1550|km2}}.
The headwaters of the river rise at elevations between {{convert|1000|m|ft}} and {{convert|1800|m|ft}} in the Angolan highlands. They drop steeply to the flat central Congo Basin at between {{convert|500|m|ft}} and {{convert|300|m|ft}} above sea level. A 2011 survey found 113 species of fish in 21 families and eight orders.{{sfn|Munene|Stiassny|2011}}
File:Au bord de la rivère Kwilu à Bandundu.jpg|Beside the river at Bandundu, June 2007
File:Rivière Kwilu à Bandundu.jpg|The river at Bandundu, June 2007
References
{{Reflist |colwidth=30em}}
Sources
{{Refbegin}}
- {{cite web|url=http://www.rgc.cd/doctech/UNDP-GIS-25_RDC_administratif.pdf|title=Découpage administratif de la République Démocratique du Congo|last=Blaes|first=X.|date=October 2008|publisher=UNOCHA and PNUD|access-date=2011-11-22|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160818075411/http://www.rgc.cd/doctech/UNDP-GIS-25_RDC_administratif.pdf|archive-date=2016-08-18}}
- {{cite journal|last2=Stiassny|first2=Melanie L. J.|year=2011|title=Fishes of the Kwilu River (Kasai basin, central Africa): A list of species collected in the vicinity of Kikwit, Bandundu Province, Democratic Republic of Congo|journal=Check List|volume=7|issue=5|first1=José Justin Mbimbi Mayi|last1=Munene|pages=691|doi=10.15560/7.5.691|doi-access=free}}
{{Refend}}
{{Rivers of Angola}}
{{Rivers of the Democratic Republic of the Congo}}
{{Authority control}}
Category:Rivers of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Category:International rivers of Africa
{{Angola-river-stub}}
{{DRCongo-river-stub}}