Wildlife of Malawi

Lake Malawi is home to the largest number of lake-residing fish species in the world. Over five hundred fish species swim through these freshwaters and about half of them can be found in the Lake Malawi park area, which is in the southern section.

Most of these species are cichlids (pronounced sick-lids), and most are endemic to Lake Malawi. The more famous of these are the tiny, colourful 'mbuna', which stay in localised areas and do not breed outside their species. This has made the park significant in evolutionary study.

Malawi's Parks & Reserves

Located on the Nyika Plateau, in the far north of Malawi, is the Nyika National Park. This is the largest and oldest of Malawi's national parks and is said to have the highest concentration of leopards in Central Africa.

Also in the Northern Highlands area is the Vwaza Marsh Game Reserve with its large concentration of game. The usual predators can be spotted in the eleven game parks located around Malawi, although you might struggle to organise them into some sort of official line-up. The usual African suspects include crocodile, elephant, lion, leopard, buffalo, hippo, and zebra.

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