Some 50,000 years ago an earthquake caused the Okavango River to crack up and spill into the Kalahari Desert, creating one of the Seven Natural Wonders of Africa: the Okavango Delta. Situated in present day Northern Botswana, the largest inland delta in the world stretches over 18,000 km2, a lush oasis offering a variety of habitats to an unequaled fauna and flora. Massive populations of elephants roam the savannas. More than 400 bird species nest in the mopani forests and at the clear waters teeming with hippos, crocodiles and lilies. In the open grasslands, some of the last remaining prides of wild dogs compete with lions, hyenas and leopards over plenty of lechwe and impala.
The cycle of life and death is not limited to the animal world. The Delta itself undergoes constant change. There is little rain and what falls during the summer quickly evaporates in the merciless heat. Exclusively watered through the Okavango river as there is little rain, seasonal floods and varying water levels wash away and recreate islands on a regular basis. Bush fires burn old and dry plants; they destruct, but simultaneously offer new growth and fertilization of the soil, hence ensuring constant rejuvenation.
Bushfires are a spectacular display of nature’s power. The billowing smoke clouds color the afternoon skies flaming orange and turn the sun into a fierce red ball of fire. The dry papyrus reeds, so typical of the Delta, pose an extra-ordinary risk. Papyrus ignites quickly and its roots smolder underground, enabling the fire to travel long distances, jumping rivers and firebreaks.
As essential as they are, fires cause great damage to the Delta and threaten the slow and smaller among the animals, those who lack the ability to migrate long distance, or leap through the fires and over the waterways.
Mostly occurring during the dry season, June to August, when water levels in the Delta are highest, bush fires are easily sparked off by a lightning in the dry grass, and fueled by winds or storms. Recently however, they are often deliberately set: by farmers clearing vegetation for agriculture or fishing, by lodge owners even to move game towards their lodge, or simply as a result of careless behavior in the dry bush.
Uncontrolled fires burn over 30% of the Okavango annually. At the moment, a fire is raging in the Delta since February 22, purportedly man-made.
for updates please check:
https://earthdata.nasa.gov/fires-and-smoke-in-the-okavango-delta-botswana