Lakes Gallery

Synodontis maculipinna, catfish

Synodontis is the most widely-distributed mochokid genus. This specimen was collected from the Rufigi River near Lake Tanganyika in Tanzania and arrived at the museum in 1922

© Bubblepunk / Natural History Museum

Sunset over the Virunga Mountains of the Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda with the rural settlements dotting the landscape

A dramatic sunset with big cumulus storm clouds over the Virunga Mountains of the Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda with rural settlements dotting the lush green landscape. Rwanda or R_publique du Rwanda, is a sovereign state in central and east Africa and one of the smallest countries on the African mainland. Located a few degrees south of the Equator, Rwanda is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Rwanda is in the African Great Lakes region and its geography is dominated by mountains in the west and savanna to the east, with numerous lakes throughout the country. The climate is temperate to subtropical. The economy is based mostly on subsistence agriculture with coffee and tea being the major cash crops for export

© Mitchell Krog

Stamp Card produced by Ottmar Zeihar - German East Africa

Stamp Card produced by Ottmar Zeihar - German East Africa (a German colony in the African Great Lakes region, which included what are now Burundi, Rwanda, and the mainland part of present Tanzania). These cards enabled collectors to see stamps which they were unable to obtain, or afford. There is a complete set of 180 cards, some of the smaller countries had a very low printing run and are hence very rare. Used Zeiher cards are very hard to find as the embossed stamp design was not approved by postal authorities as it confused the function of the proper stamps! Date: circa 1904

© Mary Evans / Grenville Collins Postcard Collection