MARQUES ET AL.; AMPHIBIANS AND TERRESTRIAL REPTILES OF ANGOLA 
13 
300 m elevation, or up to about 500 m in the northwest and southwest areas (Fig. 2). A transition 
zone rises sharply from 500 m to about 1000 m and is assoeiated with sheer eliffs and the Angolan 
escarpment in the southwest areas of the country (Fig. 2). The majority of the country lies on the 
Angolan Plateau, with a elevation between 1000-1500 meters (Fig. 2), with the exception of moun¬ 
tainous areas, mainly in Huambo, Bie and Huila provinces, that rise over 2000 m, reaching 2620 
m at Mount Moco, the highest point of Angola. The escarpment in Angola, represented by Serra da 
Mocaba and Bie Escarpments, is approximately 1,000 km long and is one of the most isolated sec¬ 
tions of the Afromontane Archipelago (Clark et al. 2011). Due to its isolation, it harbors a rich plant 
diversity, particularly rich in endemics, as well as the highest number of vertebrate endemics in the 
subcontinent after South Africa (Clark et al. 2011). 
River basins.— Angola is extensively irrigated by eight main river drainages and a series of 
coastal rivers (Fig. 3). While the north, including the provinces of Cabinda, Zaire, Uige, Malanje, 
\2^E 16^E 20<^E 24^E 
6°S 
lO^S 
14^S 
18 ^S 
Kilomcttn 
Coastal 
Rivers 
- Kwanza 
Cuito 
Cuvelai 
- Kavango 
Kunene 
Kwando 
Zambezi 
-Congo 
Figure 3. River basins of Angola (data from https://www.arcgis.com/). 
