Lake Chala

Coordinates: 3°19′S 37°42′E / 3.317°S 37.700°E / -3.317; 37.700
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Lake Chala
Lake Challa
Primary inflows
Subsurface
Primary outflowsSubsurface
Catchment area1.38 to 1.43 square kilometres (0.53 to 0.55 sq mi)[1]
Basin countriesRombo, Tanzania
Kenya
Surface area4.2 square kilometres (1.6 sq mi)[1][2]: 215 
4.5 square kilometres (1.7 sq mi)[3]
Max. depth98 metres (322 ft)[3]
Surface elevation880 metres (2,890 ft)[2]: 215 [3]

Lake Chala, also known as Lake Challa, is a

Rombo District. The lake is surrounded by a steep crater rim with a maximum height of 170 metres (560 ft).[3]

Lake Chala's average annual rainfall is about 565 millimetres (22.2 in).[2]: 215  The lake surface has an average annual evaporation of near 1,735 millimetres (68.3 in).[2] Approximately 80 percent of the lake's inflow comes from groundwater, which is derived mostly from rainfall in the montane forest zone of Mount Kilimanjaro at an elevation of 1,800 to 2,800 metres (5,900 to 9,200 ft).[1] It takes about 3 months for groundwater to reach the lake.[2]: 221  The groundwater flowed into the lake at an estimated annual volume of 8,390,000 cubic metres (296,000,000 cu ft) from 1964 through 1977.[6]


Ecology

Aerial Photo of Lake Chala

The only native fish in this lake is the

IUCN,[9] and now greatly outnumbered by other tilapia species that have been introduced to Lake Chala.[10][11]

An 18 year old British woman was killed in 2002 by a relatively small Nile crocodile while swimming at night in the lake.[12][13] A few days later, the Kenya Police Service said that the lake was "infested" with crocodiles, while the Kenya Wildlife Service said, "Crocodiles are found in Lake Chala and it is not regarded as safe to swim at all."[citation needed]

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Lake Chala.

References

  1. ^
    doi:10.5194/cp-12-1243-2016
    . Retrieved 27 June 2018.
  2. ^
    doi:10.1016/j.epsl.2009.12.023
    . Retrieved 27 June 2018.
  3. ^
    doi:10.4319/lo.2014.59.5.1621
    .
  4. ^ "Tanzania » Places Of Interest » Lake Chala". go2africa.com. Retrieved 12 June 2010.
  5. S2CID 4591524. Archived from the original
    (PDF) on 27 June 2018. Retrieved 27 June 2018.
  6. ^ B. R. Payne (1982). "Radioisotopes for the Estimation of the Water Balance of Lakes and Reservoirs" (PDF). Tracer Methods in Isotope Hydrology. International Atomic Energy Agency: 161. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 June 2018. Retrieved 25 June 2018.
  7. ^ "Oreochromis hunteri". fishbase.org. Retrieved 25 June 2018.
  8. S2CID 4591524
    .
  9. ^ "The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Oreochromis hunteri". International Union for Conservation of Nature. 2006. Retrieved 25 June 2018.
  10. S2CID 52944759
    .
  11. ISBN 978-94-024-0988-8
  12. ^ Adrian Blomfield (14 March 2002). "British girl 'killed by rare dwarf crocodile'". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 25 June 2018.
  13. ^ James Astill (12 March 2002). "Girl's body found in crocodile lake". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 25 June 2018.
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