The animals of the Okavango Delta are feeling this impact in particular, especially the hippos which require a certain depth of water to remain comfortable. As a result, hippos are becoming more stressed, whilst they crowd the remaining pools.
Although the water in the Okavango Delta actually comes from rainfall in the Angolan highlands, it is also normally replenished during the summer season by localised rain. Without this additional rain, the lagoons and waterways reduce in size. This tends to affect the prime mekoro areas – open areas of shallow water, including floodplains.
Therefore, in order not to place any unnecessary pressure on the hippos, and to ensure the safety of both and guests, mekoro activities at Kwara and Little Kwara have been suspended, until such time as the water levels inrease.
Normal boat activities are not affected as they take place in the permanent deep water channel.