Krom River

Krom River Krommerivier
The Krom River, St Francis Bay
Location of the Krom River mouth
Etymology	From "curve" in the Afrikaans language
Location
Country	South Africa
Province	Eastern Cape Province
Physical characteristics
Source
• location	Tsitsikamma Mountains, Eastern Cape, South Africa
• elevation	800 m (2,600 ft)
Mouth	Indian Ocean
• location	Sea Vista, South Africa
• coordinates	34°08′37″S 24°50′40″E
• elevation	0 m (0 ft)
Length	109 km (68 mi)
Basin size	1,085 km2 (419 sq mi)

Krom River or Kromme River (Afrikaans: Krommerivier) is a river in the Eastern Cape Province in South Africa. The river flows into the Indian Ocean through an estuary on the north side of St Francis Bay, west of Port Elizabeth. The Krom river flows in an ESE direction and is approximately 109 km long with a catchment area of 1,085 km².

The Churchill Dam and the Impofu Dam are dams on the Krom River. The latter is located near Humansdorp. Presently this river is part of the Fish to Tsitsikama Water Management Area.

Ecology

In 1995 specimens of the Cape galaxias (Galaxias zebratus), a South African fish species endemic to the Cape Floristic Region, were found in the Krom River. Until then it had been thought that its distribution was restricted to the area between the Keurbooms and the Olifants River. Although in South Africa this relatively delicate fish is only classified as near threatened, in Australia species of the same genus were driven to extinction by competing salmonids and other introduced species of fish. Since the beginning of 2021 there have been a high number of bull sharks present in the river.

See also

• List of rivers of South Africa
• List of estuaries of South Africa

External links

• IUCN Red List - Galaxias zebratus
• Working for Wetlands - Krom River