Lureco River
River in Mozambique
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Lureco River, previously also called the Rarico or Rureco,[1][2] is a river in Mozambique. It is one of the primary tributaries of the Lugenda River, itself a tributary of the Ruvuma River. It runs through the Marrupa District of Niassa Province, with the majority of its length within the Niassa Reserve.
| Lureco River | |
|---|---|
Lureco River on map of Ruvuma River basin, appearing just below label for Lugenda | |
 | |
| Location | |
| Country | Mozambique |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Mouth | |
• location | Lugenda River |
• coordinates | 12°26′51″S 37°38′06″E |
| Length | 57 km |
| Basin features | |
| River system | Ruvuma River |
The river is 57 km in length and has a catchment area of 960 square km. About 30% of the upper reaches of the catchment area lay outside of the Niassa Reserve.[3] A 2004 survey of rivers in the Niassa Reserve reports that the river's catchment area is primarily dominated by deciduous miombo (60%) and the remaining part containing deciduous dry miombo savanna woodland (10%).[3] Near the confluence with the Lugenda, there is a high density of elephant. The survey reports two settlements in the catchment area of the river, Mpamanda and Mucovia.[3]
During the Portuguese colonial era, a European expedition — operating on behalf of the Nyassa Company — discovered gold in the sandy riverbed and referred to it as the "Rarico" river.[4][5] Some small scale gold mining activity is still reported to occur near the river.[6]
In 2024, a large fish kill occurred on the river, suspected to be caused by local fishermen poisoning the fish to allow them to be collected and sold.[7]