Kenyan Rift Valley
The Great Rift Valley is part of an intra-continental ridge system that runs through Kenya from north to south. It is part of the Gregory Rift, the eastern branch of the East African Rift, which starts in Tanzania to the south and continues no ...
, in northern
Kenya
Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...
, with its far northern end crossing into
Ethiopia
Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...
. It is the world's largest permanent
desert
A desert is a landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions create unique biomes and ecosystems. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About one-third of the la ...
lake and the world's largest alkaline lake. By volume it is the world's fourth-largest salt lake after the
Caspian Sea
The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland body of water, described as the List of lakes by area, world's largest lake and usually referred to as a full-fledged sea. An endorheic basin, it lies between Europe and Asia: east of the Caucasus, ...
,
Issyk-Kul
Issyk-Kul () or Ysyk-Köl (, ; ) is an endorheic saline lake in the western Tianshan Mountains in eastern Kyrgyzstan, just south of a dividing range separating Kyrgyzstan from Kazakhstan. It is the eighth-deepest lake in the world, the eleve ...
, and
Lake Van
Lake Van (; ; ) is the largest lake in Turkey. It lies in the Eastern Anatolia Region of Turkey in the provinces of Van Province, Van and Bitlis Province, Bitlis, in the Armenian highlands. It is a Salt lake, saline Soda lake, soda lake, receiv ...
(passing the shrinking
South Aral Sea
The South Aral Sea is a lake in the basin of the former Aral Sea that formed in 1987 when that body divided in two, due to diversion of river inflow for agriculture. In 2003, the South Aral Sea itself split into eastern and western basins, the ...
), and among all lakes it ranks 24th.
Lake Turkana is now threatened by the construction of the
Gilgel Gibe III Dam
The Gilgel Gibe III Dam is a 250m high roller-compacted concrete dam with an associated hydroelectric power plant on the Omo River in Ethiopia. It is located about west of Sodo in the South Ethiopia Regional State. Once fully commissioned, it ...
in Ethiopia due to the damming of the
Omo river
The Omo River (; also called Omo-Bottego) in southern Ethiopia is the largest Ethiopian river outside the Nile Basin. Its course is entirely contained within the boundaries of Ethiopia, and it empties into Lake Turkana on the border with Kenya. T ...
which supplies most of the lake's water.
Although the lake commonly has been—and to some degree still is—used for drinking water, its salinity (slightly
brackish
Brackish water, sometimes termed brack water, is water occurring in a natural environment that has more salinity than freshwater, but not as much as seawater. It may result from mixing seawater (salt water) and fresh water together, as in estuari ...
) and very high levels of
fluoride
Fluoride (). According to this source, is a possible pronunciation in British English. is an Inorganic chemistry, inorganic, Monatomic ion, monatomic Ion#Anions and cations, anion of fluorine, with the chemical formula (also written ), whose ...
(much higher than in fluoridated water) generally make it unsuitable for drinking directly, and it has also been a source of diseases spread by contaminated water. Increasingly, communities on the lake's shores rely on underground springs for drinking water. The same characteristics that make it unsuitable for drinking, limit its use in
irrigation
Irrigation (also referred to as watering of plants) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow crops, landscape plants, and lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,000 years and has bee ...
. The climate is hot and very dry.
The
rocks
In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks form the Earth's ...
of the surrounding area are predominantly
volcanic
A volcano is commonly defined as a vent or fissure in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface.
On Earth, volcanoes are most often fo ...
. Central Island is an active volcano, emitting vapour. Outcrops and rocky shores are found on the east and south shores of the lake, while dunes, spits and flats are on the west and north, at a lower elevation.
On-shore and off-shore winds can be extremely strong, as the lake warms and cools more slowly than the land. Sudden, violent storms are frequent. Three rivers (the Omo, Turkwel and Kerio) flow into the lake, but lacking outflow, its only water loss is by evaporation. Lake volume and dimensions vary. For example, its level fell by between 1975 and 1993. Despite the lack of outflow, in
ecology
Ecology () is the natural science of the relationships among living organisms and their Natural environment, environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community (ecology), community, ecosystem, and biosphere lev ...
it is often regarded as a part of—or at least associated with—the
Nile
The Nile (also known as the Nile River or River Nile) is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa. It has historically been considered the List of river sy ...
basin because of its prehistoric connection to this system and the similarities in their aquatic
fauna
Fauna (: faunae or faunas) is all of the animal life present in a particular region or time. The corresponding terms for plants and fungi are ''flora'' and '' funga'', respectively. Flora, fauna, funga and other forms of life are collectively ...
s.
Due to local temperatures (its surface water typically is , and the mean air temperature of the region generally is similar or slightly higher), aridity and geographic inaccessibility, the lake retains its wild character.
Nile crocodile
The Nile crocodile (''Crocodylus niloticus'') is a large crocodilian native to freshwater habitats in Africa, where it is present in 26 countries. It is widely distributed in sub-Saharan Africa, occurring mostly in the eastern, southern, and ce ...
s are found in great abundance on the shore flats. The rocky shores are home to
scorpion
Scorpions are predatory arachnids of the Order (biology), order Scorpiones. They have eight legs and are easily recognized by a pair of Chela (organ), grasping pincers and a narrow, segmented tail, often carried in a characteristic forward cur ...
s and carpet vipers. The lake is rich in fish and fishing is very important to the local economy, but this is threatened by falling water levels and
overfishing
Overfishing is the removal of a species of fish (i.e. fishing) from a body of water at a rate greater than that the species can replenish its population naturally (i.e. the overexploitation of the fishery's existing Fish stocks, fish stock), resu ...
.
Lake Turkana National Parks
Lake Turkana National Parks is a group of three national parks located around Lake Turkana in Kenya. It was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997 and expanded in 2001. Reasons for the park's importance include its use as a stopping po ...
are now listed as a UNESCO
World Heritage Site
World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...
hominid
The Hominidae (), whose members are known as the great apes or hominids (), are a taxonomic family of primates that includes eight extant species in four genera: '' Pongo'' (the Bornean, Sumatran and Tapanuli orangutan); '' Gorilla'' (the ...
fossils have been discovered in the area surrounding Lake Turkana.
The area still sees few visitors, being two days' drive from
Nairobi
Nairobi is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Kenya. The city lies in the south-central part of Kenya, at an elevation of . The name is derived from the Maasai language, Maasai phrase , which translates to 'place of cool waters', a ...
. The lake is also an imaginary boundary of the Rendille and Borana and Oromo to the Turkana land. The area is primarily clay-based and is more alkaline than seawater.
Toponymy
After the independence of
Kenya
Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...
, the president, Mzee
Jomo Kenyatta
Jomo Kenyatta (22 August 1978) was a Kenyan anti-colonial activist and politician who governed Kenya as its Prime Minister from 1963 to 1964 and then as its first President from 1964 to his death in 1978. He played a significant role in the ...
, renamed it in 1975 after the Turkana, the predominant tribe there. The Turkana refer to the lake as ''Anam Ka'alakol'', meaning "the sea of many fish". It is from the name Ka'alakol that Kalokol, a town on the western shore of Lake Turkana, east of Lodwar, derives its name. The previous indigenous Turkana name for Lake Turkana was ''Anam a Cheper''. Natives who live around Lake Turkana include the Turkana, Rendille, Gabbra, Daasanach, Hamar Koke, Karo, Nyagatom, Mursi, Surma, and Molo peoples. For the location of many of these peoples, refer to the dialect map in the article.
safari
A safari (; originally ) is an overland journey to observe wildlife, wild animals, especially in East Africa. The so-called big five game, "Big Five" game animals of Africa – lion, African leopard, leopard, rhinoceros, African elephant, elep ...
across East Africa. The lake kept its European name during the colonial period of
British East Africa
East Africa Protectorate (also known as British East Africa) was a British protectorate in the African Great Lakes, occupying roughly the same area as present-day Kenya, from the Indian Ocean inland to the border with Uganda in the west. Cont ...
. However, the existence of the lake and its shape and location were well known in Europe long before Teleki conceived of his visit.
Jade Sea
At some unknown time, the lake acquired an alternative name as the ''Jade Sea'' from its turquoise colour seen approaching from a distance. The colour comes from algae that rise to the surface in calm weather. This is likely also a European name.
Basso Narok
J. W. Gregory reported in ''The Geographical Journal'' of 1894 that it was called "Basso Narok", meaning "Black Lake" in the
Samburu language
Samburu is a Maa language dialect spoken by Samburu pastoralists in northern Kenya
Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya ...
. Likewise, the nearby Ethiopian Lake Chew Bahir is called "Basso Naibor" in Samburu, meaning "White Lake". The Samburu are among the dominant tribes in the lake Turkana region when the explorers came." What the native form of this phrase was, what it might mean, and in which language is not clear.
Biology
Biomes
The major
biome
A biome () is a distinct geographical region with specific climate, vegetation, and animal life. It consists of a biological community that has formed in response to its physical environment and regional climate. In 1935, Tansley added the ...
s are the lake itself, which is an aquatic biome, and the surrounding region, which is classified as desert and xeric shrubland. The Chalbi Desert is east of the lake. During moister times, a dry grassland appears, featuring ''
Aristida
''Aristida'' is a very nearly Cosmopolitan distribution, cosmopolitan genus of plants in the Poaceae, grass family. ''Aristida'' is distinguished by having three Awn (Botany), awns (bristles) on each lemma (botany), lemma of each floret. The gen ...
adcensionis'' and ''A. mutabilis''. During drier times, the grass disappears. The shrublands contain dwarf shrubs, such as '' Duosperma eremophilum'' and ''
Indigofera
''Indigofera'' is a large genus of over 750 species of flowering plants belonging to the pea family Fabaceae. They are widely distributed throughout the tropical and subtropical regions of the world.
Description
''Indigofera'' is a varied genu ...
phytoplankton
Phytoplankton () are the autotrophic (self-feeding) components of the plankton community and a key part of ocean and freshwater Aquatic ecosystem, ecosystems. The name comes from the Greek language, Greek words (), meaning 'plant', and (), mea ...
and
zooplankton
Zooplankton are the heterotrophic component of the planktonic community (the " zoo-" prefix comes from ), having to consume other organisms to thrive. Plankton are aquatic organisms that are unable to swim effectively against currents. Consequent ...
are found in the lake.Th World Lakes Database includes mention of the lake plankton, some of which are responsible for its turquoise colour. Of the former,
cyanobacteria
Cyanobacteria ( ) are a group of autotrophic gram-negative bacteria that can obtain biological energy via oxygenic photosynthesis. The name "cyanobacteria" () refers to their bluish green (cyan) color, which forms the basis of cyanobacteri ...
are represented by ''
Microcystis
''Microcystis'' is a genus of freshwater cyanobacteria that includes the harmful algal bloom-forming '' Microcystis aeruginosa''.
Over the last few decades, cyanobacterial blooms caused by eutrophication have become a major environmental proble ...
aeruginosa'' and
microalgae
Microalgae or microphytes are microscopic scale, microscopic algae invisible to the naked eye. They are phytoplankton typically found in freshwater and marine life, marine systems, living in both the water column and sediment. They are unicellul ...
by ''
Botryococcus braunii
''Botryococcus braunii'' is a green, pyramid-shaped planktonic microalga that is of potentially great importance in the field of biotechnology. Until 2024 it was considered to have three races: A, B, and L., but it was then determined that these ...
Oocystis
''Oocystis'' is a planktonic genus of mostly freshwater green algae of the Family (biology), family Oocystaceae. It is the type genus of its family. ''Oocystis'' is mostly found in freshwater habitats and has a cosmopolitan distribution. A few sp ...
gigas'', '' Sphaerocystis schroeteri'', and some others. The zooplankton includes
copepod
Copepods (; meaning 'oar-feet') are a group of small crustaceans found in nearly every freshwater and saltwater habitat (ecology), habitat. Some species are planktonic (living in the water column), some are benthos, benthic (living on the sedimen ...
s,
cladocera
The Diplostraca or Cladocera, commonly known as water fleas, is a superorder (biology), superorder of small, mostly freshwater crustaceans, most of which feed on microscopic chunks of organic matter, though some forms are predatory.
Over 1000 sp ...
ns and
protozoa
Protozoa (: protozoan or protozoon; alternative plural: protozoans) are a polyphyletic group of single-celled eukaryotes, either free-living or parasitic, that feed on organic matter such as other microorganisms or organic debris. Historically ...
ns.
Fish
Compared to other large African lakes, Turkana has relatively few fish species. The lake holds about 50 fish species, including 12
endemics
Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...
Lacustricola
''Lacustricola'' is a genus of poeciliids native to East Africa, East, Southern Africa, Southern and Middle Africa.
Species
There are currently 20 recognized species in this genus:
* ''Lacustricola atripinna'' (Georg Johann Pfeffer, Pfeffer, 18 ...
Nile tilapia
The Nile tilapia (''Oreochromis niloticus'') is a species of tilapia, a cichlid occurring naturally in parts of Africa (such as its namesake Nile River) and the Levant, though numerous introduced populations exist outside its natural range. T ...
,
mango tilapia
The mango tilapia (''Sarotherodon galilaeus'') is a species of fish from the cichlid family that is native to fresh and brackish waters in Africa and the Levant. Other common names include Galilaea tilapia, Galilean comb, Galilee St. Peter's fis ...
,
bichir
Bichirs and the reedfish comprise Polypteridae , a family (biology), family of archaic Actinopterygii, ray-finned fishes and the only family in the order (biology), order Polypteriformes .Helfman GS, Collette BB, Facey DE, Bowen BW. 2009. The D ...
African arowana
The African arowana or Nile arowana (''Heterotis niloticus'') is a species of bonytongue. Despite being called an "arowana", the African arowana is more closely related to arapaimas, the only other members in the subfamily Arapaiminae, than th ...
,
African knifefish
The African knifefish, ''Gymnarchus niloticus'' – also called the ''aba aba'' – is an electric fish, living at the bottoms of rivers and lakes. It is the only species in the genus ''Gymnarchus'' and the family Gymnarchidae, within the or ...
Nile perch
The Nile perch (''Lates niloticus''), also known as the African snook, Goliath perch, African barramundi, Goliath barramundi, Giant lates or the Victoria perch, is a species of freshwater fish in family Latidae of order Perciformes. It is wides ...
and numerous others. During the early
Holocene
The Holocene () is the current geologic time scale, geological epoch, beginning approximately 11,700 years ago. It follows the Last Glacial Period, which concluded with the Holocene glacial retreat. The Holocene and the preceding Pleistocene to ...
, the water level of the lake was higher, and it overflowed into the
Nile
The Nile (also known as the Nile River or River Nile) is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa. It has historically been considered the List of river sy ...
River, allowing fish and crocodiles access. Consequently, the non-endemic fishes in the lake are mainly riverine species of Nilotic origin. Some of the non-endemics do not breed in the lake, but migrate up the
Omo River
The Omo River (; also called Omo-Bottego) in southern Ethiopia is the largest Ethiopian river outside the Nile Basin. Its course is entirely contained within the boundaries of Ethiopia, and it empties into Lake Turkana on the border with Kenya. T ...
and other affluents to breed. The lake is heavily fished.
Birds
The Lake Turkana region is home to hundreds of species of birds native to
Kenya
Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...
. The East African Rift System also serves as a flyway for migrating birds, bringing in hundreds more. The birds are essentially supported by plankton masses in the lake, which also feed the fish.
Some birds more common to Turkana are the
little stint
The little stint (''Calidris minuta'' or ''Erolia minuta'') is a very small wader. It breeds in arctic Europe and Asia, and is a long-distance migrant, wintering south to Africa and south Asia. It occasionally is a vagrant to North America an ...
greater flamingo
The greater flamingo (''Phoenicopterus roseus'') is the most widespread and largest species of the flamingo family. Common in the Old World, they are found in Northern (coastal) and Sub-Saharan Africa, the Indian Subcontinent (south of the Him ...
wades in its shallows.
Heuglin's bustard
Heuglin's bustard (''Neotis heuglinii'') is a species of bird in the bustard family.
The bird was initially described by Theodor von Heuglin and Gustav Hartlaub, although only Hartlaub is normally credited as the author. Hartlaub, a curator at t ...
(''Neotis heuglinii'') is found in the east of the lake region.
Reptiles
The lake formerly contained Africa's largest population of
Nile crocodile
The Nile crocodile (''Crocodylus niloticus'') is a large crocodilian native to freshwater habitats in Africa, where it is present in 26 countries. It is widely distributed in sub-Saharan Africa, occurring mostly in the eastern, southern, and ce ...
s: 14,000, as estimated in a 1968 study by Alistair Graham.
The lake also has a large population of large water turtles, particularly in the area of Central Island. The Turkana mud turtle is
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...
to the lake.
Mammals
Over the dry grasslands ranges a frail population of grazing mammals and predators. The grazers are chiefly Grevy's zebra,
Burchell's zebra
Burchell's zebra (''Equus quagga burchellii'') is a southern subspecies of the plains zebra. It is named after the British explorer and naturalist William John Burchell. Common names include bontequagga, Damaraland zebra, and Zululand zebra (Gray ...
, the
beisa oryx
The East African oryx (''Oryx beisa''), also known as the beisa, is a species of medium-sized antelope from East Africa. It has two subspecies: the common beisa oryx (''Oryx beisa beisa'') found in steppe and semidesert throughout the Horn of A ...
,
Grant's gazelle
Grant's gazelle (''Nanger granti'') is a relatively large species of gazelle antelope, distributed from northern Tanzania to South Sudan and Ethiopia, and from the Kenyan coast to Lake Victoria. Its Swahili name is ''swala granti''. It was named ...
, the
topi
''Damaliscus lunatus jimela'' is a subspecies of Damaliscus lunatus, topi, and is usually just called a topi. It is a highly social and fast type of antelope found in the savannas, semi-deserts, and floodplains of sub-Saharan Africa.
Names
The ...
and the
reticulated giraffe
The reticulated giraffe (''Giraffa reticulata'' or ''Giraffa camelopardalis reticulata'') is a species/subspecies of giraffe native to the Horn of Africa. It is differentiated from other types of giraffe by its coat, which consists of large, p ...
. They are hunted by the lion and the
cheetah
The cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus'') is a large Felidae, cat and the Fastest animals, fastest land animal. It has a tawny to creamy white or pale buff fur that is marked with evenly spaced, solid black spots. The head is small and rounded, wit ...
.
Elephants
Elephants are the Largest and heaviest animals, largest living land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant (''Loxodonta africana''), the African forest elephant (''L. cyclotis''), and the Asian ele ...
and the
black rhinoceros
The black rhinoceros (''Diceros bicornis''), also called the black rhino or the hooked-lip rhinoceros, is a species of rhinoceros native to East Africa, East and Southern Africa, including Angola, Botswana, Eswatini, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Moza ...
es are no longer seen, although Teleki reported seeing (and shooting) many. Closer to the dust is the
cushioned gerbil
The cushioned gerbil (''Gerbillus pulvinatus'') is a species of rodent in the subfamily Gerbillinae. It is native to Djibouti, Ethiopia, and Kenya, though it may also occur in south-east Sudan
Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, ...
(''Gerbillus pulvinatus'').
Geology
Lake Turkana is an
East African Rift
The East African Rift (EAR) or East African Rift System (EARS) is an active continental rift zone in East Africa. The EAR began developing around the onset of the Miocene, 22–25 million years ago. It was formerly considered to be part of a l ...
feature. A
rift
In geology, a rift is a linear zone where the lithosphere is being pulled apart and is an example of extensional tectonics. Typical rift features are a central linear downfaulted depression, called a graben, or more commonly a half-graben ...
is a weak place in the Earth's crust due to the separation of two
tectonic plate
Plate tectonics (, ) is the scientific theory that the Earth's lithosphere comprises a number of large tectonic plates, which have been slowly moving since 3–4 billion years ago. The model builds on the concept of , an idea developed durin ...
s, often accompanied by a
graben
In geology, a graben () is a depression (geology), depressed block of the Crust (geology), crust of a planet or moon, bordered by parallel normal faults.
Etymology
''Graben'' is a loan word from German language, German, meaning 'ditch' or 't ...
, or trough, in which lake water can collect. The rift began when East Africa, impelled by currents in the mantle, began separating from the rest of Africa, moving to the northeast. Currently, the graben is 320 km wide in the north of the lake, 170 km in the south. This rift is one of two, and is called the Great or Eastern Rift. There is another to the west, the Western Rift.
Lake Turkana is a unique feature of the East African landscape. Besides being a permanent desert lake, it is the only lake that retains the waters originating from two separate catchment areas of the
Nile
The Nile (also known as the Nile River or River Nile) is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa. It has historically been considered the List of river sy ...
. The Lake Turkana drainage basin draws its waters mainly from Kenya Highlands and
Ethiopian Highlands
The Ethiopian Highlands (also called the Abyssinian Highlands) is a rugged mass of mountains in Ethiopia in Northeast Africa. It forms the largest continuous area of its elevation in the continent, with little of its surface falling below , whil ...
.
The basement rocks of the region have been dated by two analytical determinations to 522 and 510 million years ago (mya). No rift was in the offing at that time. A rift is signalled by volcanic activity through the weakened crust. The oldest volcanic activity of the region occurred in the Nabwal Hills northeast of Turkana and is dated to 34.8 mya in the late
Eocene
The Eocene ( ) is a geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 56 to 33.9 million years ago (Ma). It is the second epoch of the Paleogene Period (geology), Period in the modern Cenozoic Era (geology), Era. The name ''Eocene'' comes ...
.
The visible tectonic features of the region result from extensive extrusions of
basalt
Basalt (; ) is an aphanite, aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the planetary surface, surface of a terrestrial ...
over the Turkana-Omo basin in the window 4.18–3.99 mya. These are called the Gombe Group Basalts. They are subdivided into the Mursi Basalts and the Gombi Basalts.
The two latter basalts are identified as the outcrops forming the rocky mountains and badlands around the lake. In the Omo portion of the basin, of the Mursi Basalts, the Mursi Formation is on the west side of the Omo, the Nkalabong on the Omo, and the Usno and Shungura east of the Omo. Probably the best known of the formations are the
Koobi Fora
Koobi Fora refers primarily to a region around Koobi Fora Ridge, located on the eastern shore of Lake Turkana in the territory of the nomadic Gabbra people. According to the National Museums of Kenya, the name comes from the Gabbra language ...
on the east side of Turkana and the Nachukui on the west.
Short-term fluctuations in lake level combined with periodic volcanic ash spewings over the region have resulted in a fortuitous layering of the ground cover over the basal rocks. These horizons can be dated more precisely by chemical analysis of the
tuff
Tuff is a type of rock made of volcanic ash ejected from a vent during a volcanic eruption. Following ejection and deposition, the ash is lithified into a solid rock. Rock that contains greater than 75% ash is considered tuff, while rock co ...
. As this region is believed to have been an evolutionary nest of
hominin
The Hominini (hominins) form a taxonomic tribe of the subfamily Homininae (hominines). They comprise two extant genera: ''Homo'' (humans) and '' Pan'' (chimpanzees and bonobos), and in standard usage exclude the genus '' Gorilla'' ( gorillas) ...
s, the dates are important for generating a diachronic array of fossils, both
hominoid
Apes (collectively Hominoidea ) are a Family (biology), superfamily of Old World simians native to sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia (though they were more widespread in Africa, most of Asia, and Europe in prehistory, and counting humans ...
and nonhominoid—that is, both ''ape (includes hominins)'' and ''non-ape''. Many thousands have been excavated.
Terraces representing ancient shores are visible in the
Turkana Basin
An '' Acacia'' tree in the Kokiselei river, northern Kenya
The greater Turkana Basin in East Africa (mainly northwestern Kenya and southern Ethiopia, smaller parts of eastern Uganda and southeastern South Sudan) determines a large endorheic bas ...
. The highest is 100 m above the surface of the lake (only approximate, as the lake level fluctuates), which occurred about 9500 years ago, at the end of the
Pleistocene
The Pleistocene ( ; referred to colloquially as the ''ice age, Ice Age'') is the geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fin ...
as part of the
African humid period
The African humid period (AHP; also known by other names) was a climate period in Africa during the late Pleistocene and Holocene geologic epochs, when northern Africa was wetter than today. The covering of much of the Sahara desert by grass ...
. It is generally theorised that Turkana was part of the upper Nile system at that time, connecting to
Lake Baringo
Lake Baringo is, after Lake Turkana, the most northern of the Kenyan Rift Valley lakes, with a surface area of and an elevation of . The lake is fed by several rivers: the Molo River, Molo, Perkerra River, Perkerra and Ol Arabel. It has no obvio ...
at the southern end and the
White Nile
The White Nile ( ') is a river in Africa, the minor of the two main tributaries of the Nile, the larger being the Blue Nile. The name "White" comes from the clay sediment carried in the water that changes the water to a pale color.
In the stri ...
in the north, and that volcanic land adjustments severed the connection. Such a hypothesis explains the Nile species in the lake, such as the crocodiles and the Nile perch. High water levels also occurred approximately 9000, 6000 and 5000 years ago, each of which were followed by drops in lake level of more than 40m in less than 200 years. It is thought that changes in the position of the Congo Air Boundary affected the ability of moisture from the Atlantic Ocean to reach eastern Africa, which had a profound influence on the level of Lake Turkana and adjacent water bodies.
The archaeoastronomical site Namoratunga, which has been dated to circa 300 BCE, is located near Lake Turkana.
Anthropology
Hominin
The Hominini (hominins) form a taxonomic tribe of the subfamily Homininae (hominines). They comprise two extant genera: ''Homo'' (humans) and '' Pan'' (chimpanzees and bonobos), and in standard usage exclude the genus '' Gorilla'' ( gorillas) ...
fossils of some of the earliest human ancestors have been found in the Turkana Basin. Lake Turkana is considered the cradle of human life because of the diverse hominid species found living millions of years apart in this desert landscape. These fossils have facilitated human understanding of the dynamic human evolution process and imply that they descended from more than one common ancestor, diverging into multiple lineages.
The changing forest environment forced the early humans to adapt to a more open grassland that increased their exposure to threatening predators. Volcanic ash and drier climates were ideal for preserving these human fossils but it also caused the lake to shrink or disappear at times.
In a dry riverbed, the Lomekwi 3 site recovered primitive
hammers
A hammer is a tool, most often a hand tool, consisting of a weighted "head" fixed to a long handle that is swung to deliver an impact to a small area of an object. This can be, for example, to drive nail (fastener), nails into wood, to sh ...
, anvils, and cutting tools. However, the emergence of Acheulean technology no longer assumes that tool use was a distinguishing factor among ''Homo'' species as
Australopithecus afarensis
''Australopithecus afarensis'' is an extinct species of australopithecine which lived from about 3.9–2.9 million years ago (mya) in the Pliocene of East Africa. The first fossils were discovered in the 1930s, but major fossil finds would not ta ...
were also using simple tools prior to the appearance of the genus ''
Homo
''Homo'' () is a genus of great ape (family Hominidae) that emerged from the genus ''Australopithecus'' and encompasses only a single extant species, ''Homo sapiens'' (modern humans), along with a number of extinct species (collectively called ...
'', over 3.3 million years ago.
''
Australopithecus anamensis
''Australopithecus anamensis'' is a hominin species that lived roughly between 4.3 and 3.8 million years ago, and is the oldest known ''Australopithecus'' species,
Nearly 100 fossil specimens of ''A. anamensis'' are known from Kenya and Ethiopia ...
'' fossils discovered by
Meave Leakey
Meave G. Leakey (born Meave Epps; 28 July 1942) is a British palaeoanthropologist. She works at Stony Brook University and is co-ordinator of Plio-Pleistocene research at the Turkana Basin Institute. She studies early hominid evolution and has ...
in 1994 date to around 4 million years ago, setting the beginning date of bipedalism back half a million years.
Richard Leakey
Richard Erskine Frere Leakey (19 December 1944 – 2 January 2022) was a Kenyan paleoanthropologist, conservationist and politician. Leakey held a number of official positions in Kenya, mostly in institutions of archaeology and wildlife cons ...
has led numerous
anthropological
Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including archaic humans. Social anthropology studies patterns of behaviour, wh ...
expeditions in the area which have led to many important discoveries of hominin remains.
The two-million-year-old skull 1470 was found in 1972. It was originally thought to be ''
Homo habilis
''Homo habilis'' ( 'handy man') is an extinct species of archaic human from the Early Pleistocene of East and South Africa about 2.4 million years ago to 1.65 million years ago ( mya). Upon species description in 1964, ''H. habilis'' was highly ...
'', but the scientific name ''
Homo rudolfensis
''Homo rudolfensis'' is an extinct species of archaic human from the Early Pleistocene of East Africa about 2 million years ago (mya). Because ''H. rudolfensis'' coexisted with several other hominins, it is debated what specimens can be confiden ...
'', derived from the old name of this lake (Rudolf) was proposed in 1986 by V. P. Alexeev. In 1984, the
Turkana Boy
Turkana Boy, also called Nariokotome Boy, is the name given to fossil KNM-WT 15000, a nearly complete skeleton of a ''Homo erectus'' youth who lived 1.5 to 1.6 million years ago. This specimen is the most complete early hominin skeleton ever fo ...
, a nearly complete skeleton of a ''
Homo ergaster
''Homo ergaster'' is an extinct species or subspecies of archaic humans who lived in Africa in the Early Pleistocene. Whether ''H. ergaster'' constitutes a species of its own or should be subsumed into '' H. erectus'' is an ongoing and unresol ...
'' juvenile, was discovered by
Kamoya Kimeu
Kamoya Kimeu (1938 – 20 July 2022) was a Kenyan paleontologist and curator, whose contributions to the field of paleoanthropology were recognised with the National Geographic Society's LaGorce Medal and with an honorary doctorate of science deg ...
. More recently, Meave Leakey discovered a 3.5 million-year-old skull there, designated '' Kenyanthropus platyops'' ("the flat-faced man of Kenya").
Marta Mirazón Lahr discovered early evidence of human warfare at the site of
Nataruk
Nataruk in Turkana County, Kenya, is the site of an archaeological investigation which uncovered the remains of 27 people. It dates between 9,500 and 10,500 BP (7,550–8,550 BC). The remains have garnered wide media attention for possible b ...
, located near the shore of an ancient and larger Lake Turkana, and where numerous human skeletons showing major traumatic injuries to the head, neck, ribs, knees and hands are argued to be evidence of inter-group conflict between nomadic hunter-gatherers 10,000 years ago. With over 230 individuals found at the Koobi Fora site along the western shore, and scattered ''Homo sapiens'' skeletons with bone marks along the eastern shore at the Nataruk Site, this region provides considerable insight to the way these early humans thrived and survived the inconsistent climate along the lake shore and beyond.
''
Homo erectus
''Homo erectus'' ( ) is an extinction, extinct species of Homo, archaic human from the Pleistocene, spanning nearly 2 million years. It is the first human species to evolve a humanlike body plan and human gait, gait, to early expansions of h ...
'' is the closest of ''Homo sapiens'' ancestors and contended to be the first hominin to cross the Levantine corridor out of Africa into Europe and Asia 1.8 million years ago.
Many language groups are represented in the area around Lake Turkana, which is evidence for numerous migrations of diverse people over thousands of years. The current language groups include at least three separate subgroups of the
Nilotic
The Nilotic peoples are peoples Indigenous people of Africa, indigenous to South Sudan and the Nile Valley who speak Nilotic languages. They inhabit South Sudan and the Gambela Region of Ethiopia, while also being a large minority in Kenya, Uga ...
(
Nilo-Saharan
The Nilo-Saharan languages are a proposed family of around 210 African languages spoken by somewhere around 70 million speakers, mainly in the upper parts of the Chari and Nile rivers, including historic Nubia, north of where the two tributari ...
) and
Cushitic
The Cushitic languages are a branch of the Afroasiatic language family. They are spoken primarily in the Horn of Africa, with minorities speaking Cushitic languages to the north in Egypt and Sudan, and to the south in Kenya and Tanzania. As of 2 ...
(
Afro-Asiatic
The Afroasiatic languages (also known as Afro-Asiatic, Afrasian, Hamito-Semitic, or Semito-Hamitic) are a language family (or "phylum") of about 400 languages spoken predominantly in West Asia, North Africa, the Horn of Africa, and parts of th ...
) language families, which have further subdivided into more than 12 languages surrounding the lake today. In the early
Holocene
The Holocene () is the current geologic time scale, geological epoch, beginning approximately 11,700 years ago. It follows the Last Glacial Period, which concluded with the Holocene glacial retreat. The Holocene and the preceding Pleistocene to ...
(during the
Holocene Climatic Optimum
The Holocene Climate Optimum (HCO) was a warm period in the first half of the Holocene epoch, that occurred in the interval roughly 9,500 to 5,500 years BP, with a thermal maximum around 8000 years BP. It has also been known by many other names ...
), lake levels were high and fishing and foraging were the primary subsistence economies. This was mostly supplanted by animal-based agriculture by 5000 years ago, when the lake level was in a period of rapid fluctuation. During the later
Holocene
The Holocene () is the current geologic time scale, geological epoch, beginning approximately 11,700 years ago. It follows the Last Glacial Period, which concluded with the Holocene glacial retreat. The Holocene and the preceding Pleistocene to ...
, human responses to climatic changes included intensive fishing when lake level was high and a shift to cattle herding when the level dropped. Megalithic graves are found widely distributed on the lake shores and appear to correspond to the period when domesticated animals were first introduced to the region about 5000 years ago, while later, the dead were buried in small grave cairns. People who live in the region today commonly practice mixed subsistence, switching between hunting, fishing and animal herding based on what is feasible in a given year. However, the construction of infrastructure like Christian missionary stations, energy extraction (wind, oil) and
NGO
A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an independent, typically nonprofit organization that operates outside government control, though it may get a significant percentage of its funding from government or corporate sources. NGOs often focus ...
aid distribution points have made the region more connected to and dependent on outside resources for subsistence. Traditional modes of subsistence like pastoralism and fishing are now supplemented by the cash-based economy.
Wind power
The Lake Turkana Wind Power consortium (LTWP) plans to provide 310 MW of power to Kenya's national electricity grid by tapping the unique wind conditions around the lake. The plan calls for 365
wind turbine
A wind turbine is a device that wind power, converts the kinetic energy of wind into electrical energy. , hundreds of thousands of list of most powerful wind turbines, large turbines, in installations known as wind farms, were generating over ...
s, each with a
nameplate capacity
Nameplate capacity, also known as the rated capacity, nominal capacity, installed capacity, maximum effect or gross capacity,9
Friends of Lake Turkana, a Kenyan organisation representing indigenous groups in northwestern Kenya whose livelihoods are linked to Lake Turkana, had previously estimated that the dam could reduce the level of Lake Turkana by up to 10 meter affecting up to 300,000 people. 0This could cause the brackish water to increase in salinity to where it may no longer be drinkable by the indigenous groups around the lake. Currently, the salinity of the water is about 2332 mg/L, and it is estimated that a 10-meter decrease in the water level of Lake Turkana could cause the salinity to rise to 3397 mg/L. 0Raising salinity could also drastically reduce the number of fish in the lake, which the people around Lake Turkana depend on for sustenance and their livelihoods. According to critics, this "will condemn the lake to a not-so-slow death."
According to dam proponents, the impact on Lake Turkana will be limited to the temporary reduction in flows during the filling of the reservoir. Various sources state that the filling could take between one and three wet seasons. 26] The total storage volume of the reservoir of Gibe III dam will be between 11.75 and 14 billion cubic meter, depending on sources. According to the firm that builds the dam this would reduce the water level in the lake by "less than 50 cm per year for three years" and that salinity "will not change in any way". 6
According to the International Lake Environment Committee, 90% of Lake Turkana's water is delivered by the Omo River on which the Dam would be built. 1With no outlet, Lake Turkana loses 2.3 meters of water every year to evaporation, and its level is sensitive to climatic and seasonal fluctuations. For purposes of comparison, the historic level of Lake Turkana declined from a high of 20m above today's level in the 1890s to the same level as today in the 1940s and 1950s. Then it increased again gradually by 7 metres to reach a peak around 1980, and subsequently decreased again. 1
The Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) summary of the project did not assess the impact of the dam on the water level and water quality of Lake Turkana. 2The director of Kenya's Water Services Regulatory Board, John Nyaoro, argued that the dam would have no negative impact on Lake Turkana. 3
A Kenya Government report in 2021 estimated that the surface area of Lake Turkana had increased by 10% between 2010 and 2020.
See also
*
Gilgel Gibe III Dam
The Gilgel Gibe III Dam is a 250m high roller-compacted concrete dam with an associated hydroelectric power plant on the Omo River in Ethiopia. It is located about west of Sodo in the South Ethiopia Regional State. Once fully commissioned, it ...
*
Hadar, Ethiopia
Hadar or Hadar Formation (also spelled ''Qad daqar'', ''Qadaqar''; Afar language, Afar "white 'qidi''stream 'daqar'')Jon Kalb ''Adventures in the Bone Trade'' (New York: Copernicus Books, 2001), p. 83 is a paleontological fossil site lo ...
*
Laetoli
Laetoli is a pre-historic site located in Enduleni ward of Ngorongoro District in Arusha Region, Tanzania. The site is dated to the Plio-Pleistocene and famous for its Hominina footprints, preserved in volcanic ash. The site of the Laetoli footp ...
Middle Awash
The Middle Awash is a paleoanthropological research area in the northwest corner of Gabi Rasu in the Afar Region along the Awash River in Ethiopia's Afar Depression. It is a unique natural laboratory for the study of human origins and evolution ...
*
Olduvai Gorge
The Olduvai Gorge or Oldupai Gorge in Tanzania is one of the most important paleoanthropology, paleoanthropological localities in the world; the many sites exposed by the gorge have proven invaluable in furthering understanding of early human evo ...
*
Omo Kibish Formation
The Omo Kibish Formation or simply Kibish Formation is a geological formation in the Lower Omo Valley of southwestern Ethiopia. It is named after the nearby Omo River (Ethiopia), Omo River and is subdivided into four members known as Members I-IV. ...
*
Rift Valley lakes
The Rift Valley lakes are a series of lakes in the East African Rift valley that runs through eastern Africa from Ethiopia in the north to Malawi in the south, and includes the African Great Lakes in the south. These include some of the world's ...
*
Tugen Hills
The Tugen Hills (also known as ''Saimo'') are a series of hills in Baringo County, Kenya. They are located in the central-western portion of Kenya.
The Tugen Hills represent one of the few areas in Africa preserving a succession of deposits from ...
References
Sources
* ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' under "Rudolf, Lake"
* ''Chambers World Gazetteer'', ed. David Munro, W & R Chambers Ltd. & The Press Syndicate of the University of Cambridge, 5th Edition, 1988, under ''Turkana, Lake.''
* ''Quest for the Jade Sea: Colonial Competition Around an East African Lake'', by Pascal James Imperato and published by Westview Press, 1998 .
* ''Where Giants Trod: The Saga of Kenya's Desert Lake'', by Monty Brown and published by Quiller Press, 1989 . Descriptions of the various discovery expeditions to Lake Turkana in the 19th century. The accounts inevitably offer observations about the geology and anthropology of the area.
*Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Lake Turkana remains". ''Encyclopedia Britannica'', 21 Jan. 2016, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Lake-Turkana-remains. Accessed 30 May 2022.
* Bush, Eliot. “The Meaning of Time in the Place Where Humanity’s Earliest Ancestors Arose”. ''Scientific American'', 27 Jun. 2020, https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-meaning-of-time-in-the-place-where-humanitys-earliest-ancestors-arose/.
* Herrero, Hannah. “Discoveries at Lake Turkana”. ''National Geographic'', 20 May 2022, https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/discoveries-lake-turkana.
* Hogenboom, Melissa. “The Importance of Lake Turkana”. ''Bradshaw Foundation'', 9 Dec. 2015, https://www.bradshawfoundation.com/news/index.php?id=The-Importance-of-Lake-Turkana.