"We are concerned with acute shortage of water flowing into the park. If the river dries up, thousands of hippopotamus might die," the park's chief warden Stephen Quoli told AFP on Sunday.

Quoli said the water flow into the park had decreased after farmers upstream the Katuma River had diverted its course for the purpose of irrigation.

"We have appealed to relevant government authorities seeking intervention in solving the crisis," he said.

Anne Makinda, chairperson of Tanzania's parliamentary environmental committee, has described the situation as a "serious and big crisis that needs urgent intervention."

"We must carefully address the issue of water management from sources that supply water into the park to ensure the survival of the hippopotamus," she said.

Katavi National Park, located in the remote southwestern Tanzanian district of Mpanda about 1,200 kilometres (approx 750 miles) from Dar es Salaam, is the country's third largest game sanctuary after Serengeti and Ruaha.

The main features of the park include large herds of buffaloes, elephants, zebras and hippopotamus.

Quoli told AFP that a recent census showed there were more than 47,000 buffaloes, 5,000 elephants, 6,500 hippopotamus and 3,000 elands in the park.

He said that, unlike other animals in the park, the two essential requirements for a habitat of the hippopotamus, scientifically known as Hippopotamus amphibius, are water deep enough for the animal to submerge a large part of its body during the day, and a nearby grassland.

"A hippo out of water, particularly during daytime, risks rapid dehydration due to the nature of its skin," he said.