In the upper reaches there are rolling grasslands to the south of the river, but the Itombwe Mountains to the north are rugged, covered by rainforest except where rock bluffs emerge from the steepest slopes. This country is home to gorillas.[2]
The middle and upper Elila valley is traditionally home to the Lega people.[3]
At one time thought to be extinct, in 2011 the endangered frog Hyperolius leucotaenius was found and photographed on the banks of the Elila.[4]