Editing Rwanda (section)

== Geography ==
{{Main|Geography of Rwanda}}
[[File:Rwanda Topography.png|thumb|upright=1.3|Topography of Rwanda]]
At {{convert|26338|km2|sqmi}}, Rwanda is the world's 149th-largest country,{{sfn|CIA (II)}} and the fourth smallest on the African mainland after [[Gambia]], [[Eswatini]], and [[Djibouti]].{{sfn|CIA (II)}} It is comparable in size to [[Burundi]], [[Haiti]] and [[Albania]].{{sfn|CIA (I)}}{{sfn|Richards|1994}} The entire country is at a high altitude: the [[List of countries by lowest point|lowest point]] is the [[Rusizi River]] at {{convert|950|m|ft|0}} above sea level.{{sfn|CIA (I)}} Rwanda is located in Central/Eastern Africa, and is bordered by the [[Democratic Republic of the Congo]] to the west, [[Uganda]] to the north, [[Tanzania]] to the east, and [[Burundi]] to the south.{{sfn|CIA (I)}} It lies a few degrees south of the [[equator]] and is [[landlocked]].{{sfn|U.S. Department of State|2004}} The capital, Kigali, is located near the centre of Rwanda.{{sfn|Encyclopædia Britannica|2010}}

The [[Congo-Nile Divide|watershed]] between the major [[Congo Basin|Congo]] and [[Nile Basin|Nile]] [[drainage basin]]s runs from north to south through Rwanda, with around 80% of the country's area draining into the Nile and 20% into the Congo via the [[Rusizi River]] and [[Lake Tanganyika]].{{sfn|Nile Basin Initiative|2010}} The country's longest river is the [[Nyabarongo River Wetlands|Nyabarongo]], which rises in the south-west, flows north, east, and southeast before merging with the [[Ruvubu River|Ruvubu]] to form the [[Kagera River|Kagera]]; the Kagera then flows due north along the eastern border with Tanzania. The Nyabarongo-Kagera eventually drains into [[Lake Victoria]], and its source in Nyungwe Forest is a contender for the as-yet undetermined overall [[Source (river or stream)|source]] of the [[Nile]].{{sfn|BBC News (II)|2006}} Rwanda has many lakes, the largest being [[Lake Kivu]]. This lake occupies the floor of the [[Albertine Rift]] along most of the length of Rwanda's western border, and with a maximum depth of {{convert|480|m|ft|0}},{{sfn|Jørgensen|2005|p=93}} it is one of the twenty [[List of lakes by depth|deepest lakes in the world]].{{sfn|Briggs|Booth|2006|p=153}} Other sizeable lakes include [[Lake Burera|Burera]], [[Lake Ruhondo|Ruhondo]], [[Lake Muhazi|Muhazi]], [[Lake Rweru|Rweru]], and [[Lake Ihema|Ihema]], the last being the largest of a string of lakes in the eastern plains of [[Akagera National Park]].{{sfn|Hodd|1994|p=522}}

Mountains dominate central and western Rwanda and the country is sometimes called "{{lang|fr|Pays des mille collines}}" in French ("Land of a thousand hills").<ref>Christophe Migeon. "[https://www.lepoint.fr/art-de-vivre/voyage-au-rwanda-le-pays-des-mille-collines-26-05-2018-2221523_4.php Voyage au Rwanda, le pays des Mille Collines] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190407095409/https://www.lepoint.fr/art-de-vivre/voyage-au-rwanda-le-pays-des-mille-collines-26-05-2018-2221523_4.php |date=7 April 2019 }}" (In French), ''[[Le Point]]'', 26 May 2018. Retrieved 31 July 2019.</ref> They are part of the Albertine Rift Mountains that flank the Albertine branch of the [[East African Rift]], which runs from north to south along Rwanda's western border.{{sfn|WWF|2001|loc=Location and General Description}} The highest peaks are found in the [[Virunga Mountains|Virunga]] volcano chain in the northwest; this includes [[Mount Karisimbi]], Rwanda's highest point, at {{convert|4507|m|ft|0}}.{{sfn|Mehta|Katee|2005|p=37}} This western section of the country lies within the [[Albertine Rift montane forests]] ecoregion.{{sfn|WWF|2001|loc=Location and General Description}} It has an elevation of {{convert|1500|to|2500|m|ft|0}}.{{sfn|Munyakazi|Ntagaramba|2005|p=7}} The centre of the country is predominantly rolling hills, while the eastern border region consists of [[savanna]], plains and swamps.{{sfn|Munyakazi|Ntagaramba|2005|p=18}}

=== Climate ===

[[File:RwandaVolcanoAndLake cropped2.jpg|thumb|Lake and volcano in the [[Virunga Mountains]]|alt=Photograph of a lake with one of the Virunga mountains behind, partially in cloud]]
Rwanda has a [[temperate]] [[Tropical climate|tropical highland]] climate, with lower temperatures than are typical for equatorial countries because of its high elevation.{{sfn|U.S. Department of State|2004}} Kigali, in the centre of the country, has a typical daily temperature range between {{convert|15|and|28|°C|°F}}, with little variation through the year.{{sfn|World Meteorological Organization}} There are some temperature variations across the country; the mountainous west and north are generally cooler than the lower-lying east.{{sfn|Best Country Reports|2007}} There are two rainy seasons in the year; the first runs from February to June and the second from September to December. These are separated by two [[dry season]]s: the major one from June to September, during which there is often no rain at all, and a shorter and less severe one from December to February.{{sfn|King|2007|p=10}} Rainfall varies geographically, with the west and northwest of the country receiving more precipitation annually than the east and southeast.{{sfn|Adekunle|2007|p=1}} [[Global warming]] has caused a change in the pattern of the rainy seasons. According to a report by the Strategic Foresight Group, change in climate has reduced the number of rainy days experienced during a year, but has also caused an increase in frequency of torrential rains.{{sfn|Strategic Foresight Group|2013|p=29}} Both changes have caused difficulty for farmers, decreasing their productivity.{{sfn|Bucyensenge|2014}} Strategic Foresight also characterise Rwanda as a fast warming country, with an increase in average temperature of between 0.7&nbsp;°C to 0.9&nbsp;°C over fifty years.{{sfn|Strategic Foresight Group|2013|p=29}}

=== Biodiversity ===
{{Main|Wildlife of Rwanda}}
[[File:Mountain gorilla from Susa Group in Karisimbi thicket of Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda. Emmanuel Kwizera.jpg|left|thumb|[[Volcanoes National Park]] is the home of the largest population of [[mountain gorillas]] in the world.]]

In prehistoric times, [[montane forest]] occupied one-third of the territory of present-day Rwanda. Naturally occurring vegetation is now mostly restricted to the [[National parks of Rwanda|three national parks]], with [[Terrace (agriculture)|terraced agriculture]] dominating the rest of the country.{{sfn|Briggs|Booth|2006|pp=3–4}} [[Nyungwe Forest|Nyungwe]], the largest remaining tract of forest, contains 200 species of tree as well as [[orchid]]s and [[begonia]]s.{{sfn|King|2007|p=11}} Vegetation in the [[Volcanoes National Park]] is mostly [[bamboo]] and moorland, with small areas of forest.{{sfn|Briggs|Booth|2006|pp=3–4}} By contrast, Akagera has a [[savanna]] ecosystem in which [[acacia]] dominates the flora. There are several rare or endangered plant species in Akagera, including ''[[Markhamia lutea]]'' and ''[[Eulophia guineensis]]''.{{sfn|REMA (Chapter 5)|2009|p=3}}<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.climatelinks.org/sites/default/files/asset/document/rwanda_adaptation_fact_sheet_jan2012.pdf |title=Climate Change Adaption in Rwanda |publisher=USAID |access-date=14 March 2022 |archive-date=7 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220207011141/https://www.climatelinks.org/sites/default/files/asset/document/rwanda_adaptation_fact_sheet_jan2012.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

The greatest diversity of large mammals is found in the three national parks, which are designated conservation areas.{{sfn|Government of Rwanda (II)}} Akagera contains typical savanna animals such as giraffes and elephants,{{sfn|RDB (III)}} while Volcanoes is home to an estimated one-third of the worldwide [[mountain gorilla]] population.{{sfn|RDB (I)|2010}} Nyungwe Forest boasts thirteen primate species including [[common chimpanzee]]s and [[Black-and-white colobus|Ruwenzori colobus]] arboreal monkeys; the Ruwenzori colobus move in groups of up to 400 individuals, the largest troop size of any primate in Africa.{{sfn|Briggs|Booth|2006|p=140}}
[[File:Talk - Flickr - askmeaks.jpg|upright|thumb|Giraffe in Akagera National Park]]
Rwanda's population of [[lion]]s was destroyed in the aftermath of the genocide of 1994, as national parks were turned into camps for displaced people and the remaining animals were poisoned by cattle herders. In June 2015, two South African parks donated seven lions to [[Akagera National Park]], reestablishing a lion population in Rwanda.{{sfn|Smith|2015}} The lions were held initially in a fenced-off area of the park, and then collared and released into the wild a month later.{{sfn|The New Times|2015}}

Eighteen endangered black rhinos were brought to Rwanda in 2017 from South Africa.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/may/03/black-rhinos-return-to-rwanda-10-years-after-disappearance |title=Black rhinos return to Rwanda 10 years after disappearance |agency=Agence France-Presse |date=3 May 2017 |website=The Guardian |access-date=17 December 2022 |archive-date=29 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221129042039/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/may/03/black-rhinos-return-to-rwanda-10-years-after-disappearance |url-status=live }}</ref> After positive results, five more black rhinos were delivered to Akagera National Park from zoos all over Europe in 2019.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.cntraveler.com/story/rwanda-just-pulled-off-the-largest-transport-of-rhinos-from-europe-to-africa |title=Rwanda Just Pulled Off the Largest Transport of Rhinos From Europe to Africa |date=26 June 2019 |website=Condé Nast Traveler |access-date=17 December 2022 |archive-date=17 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221217212041/https://www.cntraveler.com/story/rwanda-just-pulled-off-the-largest-transport-of-rhinos-from-europe-to-africa |url-status=live }}</ref>

Similarly, the white rhino population is growing in Rwanda. In 2021, Rwanda received 30 white rhinos from South Africa with the goal of Akagera being a safe breeding ground for the near-threatened species.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/nov/29/white-rhinos-flown-from-south-africa-to-rwanda-in-largest-single-translocation |title=White rhinos flown from South Africa to Rwanda in largest single translocation |date=29 November 2021 |website=The Guardian |access-date=17 December 2022 |archive-date=17 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221217212033/https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/nov/29/white-rhinos-flown-from-south-africa-to-rwanda-in-largest-single-translocation |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.npr.org/2021/11/30/1060057463/rhinos-translocation-move-white-rwanda-south-africa |title=Conservationists flew 30 white rhinos to Rwanda in a huge operation to protect them |first=Joe |last=Hernandez |work=NPR |date=30 November 2021 |access-date=17 December 2022 |archive-date=17 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221217212031/https://www.npr.org/2021/11/30/1060057463/rhinos-translocation-move-white-rwanda-south-africa |url-status=live}}</ref>

There are 670 [[List of birds of Rwanda|bird species in Rwanda]], with variation between the east and the west.{{sfn|King|2007|p=15}} Nyungwe Forest, in the west, has 280 recorded species, of which 26 are endemic to the Albertine Rift;{{sfn|King|2007|p=15}} endemic species include the [[Rwenzori turaco]] and [[handsome spurfowl]].{{sfn|WCS}} Eastern Rwanda, by contrast, features savanna birds such as the [[black-headed gonolek]] and those associated with swamps and lakes, including [[stork]]s and [[Crane (bird)|cranes]].{{sfn|King|2007|p=15}}

Recent entomological work in the country has revealed a rich diversity of [[praying mantises]],{{sfn|Tedrow|2015}} including a new species ''Dystacta tigrifrutex'', dubbed the "bush tiger mantis".{{sfn|Maynard|2014}}

Rwanda contains three terrestrial ecoregions: [[Albertine Rift montane forests]], [[Victoria Basin forest-savanna mosaic]], and [[Ruwenzori-Virunga montane moorlands]].<ref name="DinersteinOlson2017">{{cite journal |last1=Dinerstein |first1=Eric |last2=Olson |first2=David |last3=Joshi |first3=Anup |last4=Vynne |first4=Carly |last5=Burgess |first5=Neil D. |last6=Wikramanayake |first6=Eric |last7=Hahn |first7=Nathan |last8=Palminteri |first8=Suzanne |last9=Hedao |first9=Prashant |last10=Noss |first10=Reed |last11=Hansen |first11=Matt |last12=Locke |first12=Harvey |last13=Ellis |first13=Erle C |last14=Jones |first14=Benjamin |last15=Barber |first15=Charles Victor |last16=Hayes |first16=Randy |last17=Kormos |first17=Cyril |last18=Martin |first18=Vance |last19=Crist |first19=Eileen |last20=Sechrest|first20=Wes |last21=Price |first21=Lori |last22=Baillie |first22=Jonathan E.M. |last23=Weeden |first23=Don |last24=Suckling |first24=Kierán |last25=Davis |first25=Crystal |last26=Sizer |first26=Nigel |last27=Moore |first27=Rebecca |last28=Thau |first28=David |last29=Birch |first29=Tanya |last30=Potapov|first30=Peter |last31=Turubanova |first31=Svetlana |last32=Tyukavina |first32=Alexandra |last33=de Souza |first33=Nadia |last34=Pintea |first34=Lilian |last35=Brito |first35=José C. |last36=Llewellyn |first36=Othman A. |last37=Miller |first37=Anthony G. |last38=Patzelt |first38=Annette |last39=Ghazanfar |first39=Shahina A. |last40=Timberlake |first40=Jonathan |last41=Klöser |first41=Heinz |last42=Shennan-Farpón |first42=Yara |last43=Kindt |first43=Roeland |last44=Lillesø |first44=Jens-Peter Barnekow |last45=van Breugel |first45=Paulo |last46=Graudal |first46=Lars |last47=Voge |first47=Maianna |last48=Al-Shammari |first48=Khalaf F. |last49=Saleem |first49=Muhammad |display-authors=1 |title=An Ecoregion-Based Approach to Protecting Half the Terrestrial Realm |journal=BioScience |volume=67 |issue=6 |year=2017 |pages=534–545 |issn=0006-3568 |doi=10.1093/biosci/bix014 |pmid=28608869 |pmc=5451287 |doi-access=free}}</ref> The country had a 2019 [[Forest Landscape Integrity Index]] mean score of 3.85/10, ranking it 139th globally out of 172 countries.<ref name="FLII-Supplementary">{{cite journal |last1=Grantham |first1=H.S. |last2=Duncan |first2=A. |last3=Evans |first3=T.D. |last4=Jones |first4=K.R. |last5=Beyer |first5=H.L. |last6=Schuster |first6=R. |last7=Walston |first7=J. |last8=Ray |first8=J.C. |last9=Robinson |first9=J.G. |last10=Callow |first10=M. |last11=Clements |first11=T. |last12=Costa |first12=H.M. |last13=DeGemmis |first13=A. |last14=Elsen |first14=P.R. |last15=Ervin |first15=J. |last16=Franco |first16=P. |last17=Goldman |first17=E. |last18=Goetz |first18=S. |last19=Hansen |first19=A. |last20=Hofsvang |first20=E. |last21=Jantz |first21=P. |last22=Jupiter |first22=S. |last23=Kang |first23=A. |last24=Langhammer |first24=P. |last25=Laurance |first25=W.F. |last26=Lieberman |first26=S. |last27=Linkie |first27=M. |last28=Malhi |first28=Y. |last29=Maxwell |first29=S. |last30=Mendez |first30=M. |last31=Mittermeier |first31=R. |last32=Murray |first32=N.J. |last33=Possingham |first33=H. |last34=Radachowsky |first34=J. |last35=Saatchi |first35=S. |last36=Samper |first36=C. |last37=Silverman |first37=J. |last38=Shapiro |first38=A. |last39=Strassburg |first39=B. |last40=Stevens |first40=T. |last41=Stokes |first41=E. |last42=Taylor |first42=R. |last43=Tear |first43=T. |last44=Tizard |first44=R. |last45=Venter |first45=O. |last46=Visconti |first46=P. |last47=Wang |first47=S. |last48=Watson |first48=J.E.M. |display-authors=1 |title=Anthropogenic modification of forests means only 40% of remaining forests have high ecosystem integrity – Supplementary Material |journal=Nature Communications |volume=11 |issue=1 |year=2020 |page=5978 |issn=2041-1723 |pmid=33293507 |pmc=7723057 |bibcode=2020NatCo..11.5978G |doi=10.1038/s41467-020-19493-3 |doi-access=free}}</ref>