It then drains Lake Malombe and flows south through Liwonde National Park where large concentrations of hippopotamus are common along its shores.

Beyond Chikwawa, the lower river turns southeast and enters the low-lying Mozambique plain.

Its largest and one of its few perennial tributaries, the Ruo River, joins the Shire near the Malawian town of Chiromo.

The muddy waters pass through a large stagnant area known as the Elephant Marsh before reaching the confluence with the Zambezi River south of the town of Sena, Mozambique.

[4] The river's valley is part of the East African Rift system.