Lake Skadar
| Lake Skadar | |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 42°10′N 19°19′E / 42.167°N 19.317°E |
| Primary inflows | Morača |
| Primary outflows | Bojana |
| Basin countries |  Albania Montenegro |
| Max. length | 48 km (30 mi) |
| Max. width | 14 km (8.7 mi) |
| Surface area | 370 km² – 530 km² |
| Max. depth | 44 m (144 ft) |
| Surface elevation | 6 m (20 ft) |
Lake Skadar (Albanian: Liqeni i Shkodrës, pronounced [liˈcɛni i ˈʃkɔdrəs]; Serbian: Скадарско језеро, Skadarsko jezero, pronounced [skâdarskɔː jɛ̂zɛrɔ]) — also called Lake Scutari and Lake Shkodër — lies on the border of Montenegro with Albania, the largest lake in the Balkan Peninsula. It is named after the city of Shkodra in northern Albania ([Shkodra or Shkodër] Error: {{Lang-xx}}: text has italic markup (help), Serbian: Скадар, Skadar, Italian: Scutari).
Geography
The lake's surface, 6 m (20 ft) above sea level, can vary between 370 km2 (140 sq mi) and 530 km2 (200 sq mi), of which 2/3 is in Montenegro. The lake is a cryptodepression, filled by the river Morača and drained into the Adriatic by the 41 km (25 mi) long Bojana, which forms the international border on the lower half of its length. There are additionally some fresh water sources at the lake bottom. Some small islands like Beška, with two churches on it and Grmožur, a former fortress and prison can be found on the southwest side of the lake.
| Lake Shkodra National Park | |
|---|---|
 Lake Shkodra and surrounding area | |
| Location | Albania & Montenegro |
| Area | 400 km2 (150 sq mi) (40.000 ha) |
| Established | 1983 |
The Montenegrin part of the lake and its surrounding area were declared a national park in 1983. The Albanian part has been designated as a Managed Nature Reserve. In 1996, by Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, it was included in the Ramsar list of wetlands of international importance.[1]
Fauna
Lake Skadar is one of the largest bird reserves in Europe, having 270 bird species, among which are some of the last pelicans in Europe, and thus popular with birders. The lake also contains habitats of seagulls and herons and is abundant in fish, especially in carp, bleak and eel. Of the 34 native fish species, 7 are endemic to Lake Skadar.[2]
Gallery
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View of the lake, Albania -
Western part of the lake close to Rijeka Crnojevića, Montenegro -
Outflow at Shkodër in Albania -
Fortress Grmožur in Skadar Lake, Montenegro
See also
- Radio Skadar Lake, radio station in Montenegro, based in Podgorica
References
- ^ Ramsar (August 4, 2010). "The list of wetlands of international importance" (PDF) (in English and Spanish). Ramsar. p. 5. Retrieved 14 August 2010.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link) - ^ Talevski, Milosevic, Maric, Petrovic, Talevska and Talevska (2009). Biodiversity of Ichtyofauna from Lake Prespa, Lake Ohrid and Lake Skadar. Biotechnology & Biotechnological Equipment 23(2). ISSN 1310-2818
External links
- Visitor's Guide to Skadar Lake and Eco Resort Plavnica
- Skadarsko jezero (in Montenegrin, with a lot of images)
- Description of Skadar Lake with photos
- Description of birding opportunities on Skadar Lake
- Visitor's Guide to Skadar Lake
