Pink lake
A pink lake is a lake that has a red or pink colour. This is often caused by the presence of salt-tolerant
Causes
Pink lakes arise from a combination of factors, which include climate and
Alga
Dunaliella salina is the most
It was thought for a long time that the colour of pink lakes was the result of this alga, as it has been found in many pink lakes.[5]
Bacteria/archaea
Some bacteria and archaea also produce a carotenoid pigment within their cell membranes, which may either contribute to or be the only cause of the pink colouration.[2]
In some of the hundreds of Australian pink lakes, a red bacterium,
Environmental scientist Tilo Massenbauer, while researching the loss of colour of the lake since the 1990s (attributed to excessive salt harvesting from it), has a hunch that all pink lakes are caused by S. ruber, rather than D. salina, but proving this is challenging, because bacteria are so much smaller and more difficult to find than algae. A project is being planned to pump more salt into the lake from local agricultural land, where high salinity is a problem.[1] Lake Retba in Senegal, in West Africa, contains the same bacterium.[2]
S. ruber produces a
The archaea Halobacterium salinarum (formerly Halobacterium cutirubrum), which is pink in colour and generally grows within the salt crust on the bottom of the lake, has been found to be involved in the colour of some pink lakes, such as the lake in Melbourne's Westgate Park. The exact colour of the lake depends on the balance between D. salina and H. salinarium, with salt concentration having a direct impact.[8][9]
Characteristics
The majority of pink salt lakes change their colour which is often linked to rainfall. A lake in Westgate Park, Melbourne, Australia, was coloured pink in March 2017[10] and then again in September 2019, but since then and as of January 2022[update] had taken on a dark green hue. Warmer weather and lower rainfall appears to make it turn pink.[1] As water evaporates, the salinity increases, but salinity is not the only factor at work. Sediment and the organisms living in the lake affect its colour, and the shade of pink that it takes on.[10]
Pink lakes such as Lake Hillier can be up to ten times saltier than
Examples
Africa
- Kleinzee Yacht Club in Kleinzee, Northern Cape, South Africa
- Lake Natron near Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania
- Lake Retba or Lac Rose, in Senegal[2][11]
Americas
- Dusty Rose Lake in British Columbia, Canada[5][11]
- Laguna Colorada, Bolivia[10][11]
- On the Yucatán Peninsula, Mexico[10]
Asia
- Aralsor, Kazakhstan
- Koryakovka (lake), Kazakhstan
- Lipar Pink Wetland in the Chabahar, Sistan, Iran
- Lonar Lake in Maharashtra, India
- Shiraz, Iran
- Burlinskoye Lake in Altai Krai, Siberia, Russia[12][13]
Australasia
- Champagne Pool, Waiotapu thermal region, New Zealand[11]
- Hutt Lagoon in midwest Western Australia, covering 70 km2 (27 sq mi)[14][11]
- Lake Bumbunga near Lochiel, South Australia
- Lake Hillier in the Recherche Archipelago, Western Australia[11]
- Pink Lake (Western Australia) near Esperance
- Badjaling, near Quairading, WA[11]
- Victoria, Australia[11]
Europe
- Crimea, Ukraine
- Las Salinas de Torrevieja, near Torrevieja in Alicante province, Spain[10][11]
- Les Salins d'Aigues-Mortes, in the Camargue in France
- Pačir lake, Bačka Topola, Serbia
Footnotes
- ^ Conflicting reports of percentage.
References
- ^ a b c d e Salleh, Anna (4 January 2022). "Why Australia has so many pink lakes and why some of them are losing their colour". ABC News. ABC Science. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 21 January 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f McFadden, Christopher (24 July 2018). "Lake Hillier: Australia's Pink Lake and the Story Behind It". Interesting Engineering. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
- ^ PMID 16176593.
- ^ "U.S. Geological Survey". Why is the ocean salty?. 26 September 2013. Retrieved 23 January 2022.
- ^ a b c d Cassella, Carly (13 December 2016). "How an Australian lake turned bubble-gum pink". Australian Geographic. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
- ^ "Here's the Real Reason Why Australia Has Bubblegum Pink Lakes". Discovery. 24 December 2019. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
- ^ a b "Why is Pink Lake on Middle Island, off the coast of Esperance, pink?". Australia's Golden Outback. Includes extract from Australian Geographic article. 18 January 2021. Archived from the original on 12 February 2022. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: others (link) - ^ "Westgate Park's Pink Lake". ToMelbourne.com.au. 8 July 2018. Retrieved 23 January 2022.
- ^ "Pink Lake In The Fringe of CBD". Pink Lake In The Fringe of CBD (in Afrikaans). Retrieved 23 January 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f Klein, Joanna (10 March 2017). "A Lake Turned Pink in Australia. It's Not the Only One". The New York Times. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Top 10 Best Pink Lakes In the World". Traveleering. 19 August 2021. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
- ^ "Why a Train Runs Directly Through This Pink Lake in Siberia". The Drive. March 2021. Retrieved 26 May 2023.
- ^ "Crimson treasure of Siberia, the salt lake that turns pink on sunny days". The Siberian Times. July 2019. Retrieved 26 May 2023.
- ^ "Feature by Simon Webster The amazing pink lakes of Western Australia". Western Australia. October 2018. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
- ^ Wade, Pamela (12 December 2021). "World Famous in New Zealand: Marlborough's startling alien-like salt lake". Stuff. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
- ^ "Lake Grassmere Saltworks". Marlborough, New Zealand. 21 January 2021. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
- ^ "Мертвое Розовое озеро Херсонщины – путь к исцелению , Портал oktv.ua". oktv.ua. Retrieved 2021-01-19.
External links
- "Why Is This Lake in Australia Bright Pink?" (Video). Atlas Obscura. Video of Lake Hllier.
