Ruo River
Ruo River is the largest tributary of the Shire River in southern Malawi and Mozambique. It originates from the Mulanje Massif (Malawi) and forms of the Malawi-Mozambique border. It joins the Shire River at Chiromo. The Ruo River watershed includes the southern slopes of the Mulanje Massif and Shire Highlands in Malawi. Its principal tributary is the Thuchila (or Tuchila) River, which drains the southwestern slopes of Mulanje and the southeastern slopes of the Shire Highlands and the Thuchila plain between them. The confluence of the Ruo and Thuchila is near Sandama. The Ruo and its left bank tributaries also drain a portion of Milange District in neighboring Mozambique. Zoa Falls (16°18'27"S 35°17'10"E) has a 60-meter drop, and effectively isolates the fish populations upstream in the Ruo watershed from those of the lower Zambezi and Shire rivers. The Shire Highlands Railway follows the lower course of the Ruo between Sandama and Chiromo. Ruo River screeching frog Frog Arthroleptis francei was first collected from near the Ruo River on the slopes of the Mulanje Massif. One of its common names is Ruo River screeching frog. Its other common name, France's squeaker, as well as its specific name francei carry a tragic