The Environment of Lakes

The primary source of lake water is precipitation that may enter the depression directly, as runoff from surrounding higher ground, or through underground springs. Unique flora and fauna live around a lake and vary depending on the size and shape of the lake and the surrounding rocks and soil. Flora and fauna in the lake are usually found in three zones: the littoral zone closest to the shallow water shore; the limnetic, in the open, well-lit water away from most vegetation; and the lower profundal zones areas of low oxygen and light.

Ponds are generally small, shallow lakes; the criterion for differentiating between ponds and lakes is usually temperature. Ponds have a more consistent temperature throughout; while lakes, because they are deeper, have a stratified temperature structure that depends on the season.

Global Distribution of Lakes

Lakes are not evenly distributed on the earth's surface; most are located in high latitudes and mountainous regions. Canada alone contains nearly 50% of the world's lakes. Although lakes are usually thought to be freshwater bodies, many lakes, especially in arid regions, become quite salty because a high rate of evaporation concentrates inflowing salts. The Caspian Sea, Dead Sea, and Great Salt Lake are among the greatest of the world's salt lakes. The Great Lakes of the United States and Canada is the world's largest system of freshwater lakes. Lake Superior alone is the world's largest freshwater lake with an area of 31,820 sq mi (82,414 sq km), although there is a larger volume of freshwater in Lake Baykal. The Caspian Sea is the largest lake in the world, with an area of c.144,000 sq mi (372,960 sq km). Lake Titicaca in the Andes Mts. of South America is the world's highest large lake at 12,500 ft (3,800 m) above sea level; the Dead Sea is the lowest at 1,345 ft (410 m) below sea level.

Formation and Fate of Lakes

Many lakes were formed as a result of glacial action during the Pleistocene ice sheets. In some areas, as exemplified by the Great Lakes, basins were carved into bedrock by the erosive action of the advancing ice mass. Lake basins are also formed by glacial moraine deposits that dam preexisting stream valleys. Lakes also form in calderas, created by the collapse of volcanic craters. Where extensive limestone deposits underlie a region, groundwater can dissolve great volumes of the limestone, forming caves that often contain underground lakes and eventually, if the roofs collapse, leave deep lake basins. Tectonic activity in the earth's crust forms lake basins in many ways, such as fault-generating rift valleys as those found in E Africa, that often fill with water. Oxbow lakes form in abandoned stream channels in floodplains of meandering rivers. Deposition of sediment along a shoreline can cut off bays, forming coastal lagoons. Humans often form lakes by building dams across river valleys for flood control, hydroelectric generation, or recreational purposes.

Lakes are transient features on the earth's surface and generally disappear in a relatively short period of geologic time by a combination of processes (e.g., erosion of an outlet or climatic changes that bring drier conditions). In a process called eutrophication, a lake gradually fills with organic and inorganic sediment, becoming a swamp or bog, and eventually a meadow. Human activity has greatly increased the rates of eutrophication; urban and suburban land construction activities result in increased discharge of soil debris into streams draining into lakes, filling them.

Founded in 1847 by Brigham Young as the capital of the Mormon (see Latter-day Saints, Church of Jesus Christ of) community, the city achieved greatness as its economic hub. The prominence of the gigantic Temple (built 1853-93) on Temple Square at the city's heart reflects the Mormon nature of Salt Lake City; nearby are the Mormon Tabernacle (opened 1867) and Conference Center (opened 2000). After 1849, Salt Lake City was a supply point for overland travel to California and was connected with the first transcontinental railroad by a line built (1869-70) by Brigham Young to Ogden. It is the seat of the Univ. of Utah, Westminster College, and a campus of Brigham Young Univ. Of interest are the state capitol (1914), Brigham Young's home (the "Beehive House," 1877), and the Brigham Young Monument (1897). Home to the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association, the city hosted the 2002 Winter Olympic games.

2 1 mi (1.6 km) long, in Devils Lake State Park, central Wis., NW of Madison. The clear, oval-shaped lake is ringed by bluffs, 400 to 500 ft (122-152 m) high. Native American mounds rest on its shores. The lake is a year-round resort.

Lake Chad was formerly even larger, attaining a depth of c.930 ft (285 m) in the 19th cent.; 60,000 years ago, it covered 150,000 sq mi (388,500 sq km), roughly the size of the Caspian Sea. The lake also has been much smaller than it was in the mid-20th cent., and probably has previously disappeared: The retreat of the shoreline has revealed sand dunes that were submerged until recently, and the fish found in the lake are adapted to river life.

Small lake located in a former meander loop of a river or stream channel. It is generally formed as a river cuts through a meander neck to shorten its course, blocks off the old channel, and then migrates away from the lake. If only one loop is cut off, the lake is crescent-shaped; if more than one loop is cut off, the lake is serpentine (winding). Eventually, oxbow lakes silt up to form marshes and finally meander scars.

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Large, voracious char (Salvelinus namaycush) found widely from northern Canada and Alaska to New England and the Great Lakes, usually in deep, cool lakes. They are greenish gray and covered with pale spots. In spring, 5-lb (2.3-kg) lake trout are caught in shallow water; in summer, fish of up to 100 lbs (45 kg) are trolled in deep water. Lake trout were virtually eliminated from the Great Lakes by the sea lamprey, which entered through the Welland Canal in the 1930s. They have been introduced in the western U.S., South America, Europe, and New Zealand.

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Relatively large body of slow-moving or standing water that occupies an inland basin. Lakes are most abundant in high northern latitudes and in mountain regions, particularly those that were covered by glaciers in recent geologic times. The primary sources of lake water are melting ice and snow, springs, rivers, runoff from the land surface, and direct precipitation. In the upper part of lakes there is a good supply of light, heat, oxygen, and nutrients, well distributed by currents and turbulence. As a result, a large number of diverse aquatic organisms can be found there. The most abundant forms are plankton (chiefly diatoms), algae, and flagellates. In the lower levels and in the sediments, the main forms of life are bacteria. Seealso limnology.

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Flat-bottomed depression that is periodically covered by water. Playas occur in interior desert basins and adjacent to coasts in arid and semiarid regions. The water that periodically covers the playa slowly filters into the groundwater system or evaporates into the atmosphere, causing the deposition of salt, sand, and mud along the bottom and around the edges of the depression.

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Lake astride the Canadian-U.S. boundary, southwestern Ontario, southeastern Manitoba, and northern Minnesota. Irregular in shape, it is 70 mi (110 km) long and up to 60 mi (95 km) wide. It has an area of 1,727 sq mi (4,472 sq km), of which 642 sq mi (1,663 sq km) are in U.S territory. It has an estimated 25,000 mi (40,000 km) of shoreline and more than 14,000 islands. It receives the Rainy River from the southeast and drains north through the Winnipeg River into Lake Winnipeg. Visited by French explorers in 1688, it became an important fur-trading route between the Great Lakes and western Canada. The Northwest Angle, the northernmost point of the coterminous U.S., is separated from the rest of Minnesota by a part of the lake.

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Lake, east-central New Hampshire, U.S. New Hampshire's largest lake, it covers an area of 71 sq mi (184 sq km) and is 20 mi (32 km) long by 12 mi (19 km) wide. It is dotted with 274 islands. Its outlet, the Winnipesaukee River, flows about 20 mi (32 km) southwest to enter the Merrimack River. It is a popular summer recreation area.

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Lake, western Manitoba, Canada. Located west of Lake Winnipeg, it is a remnant of glacial Lake Agassiz. Numerous streams feed the 2,075-sq-mi (5,374-sq-km) lake, which drains southeastward into Lake Manitoba. It is more than 150 mi (240 km) long, up to 32 mi (51 km) wide, and has a maximum depth of 833 ft (254 m). It was explored in 1739 by Pierre La Verendrye and later served as part of a fur-trading route. It now is important for commercial fishing.

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Lake, south-central Manitoba, Canada. Fed by many rivers, including the Saskatchewan, Red River of the North, and Winnipeg, it is drained to the northeast by the Nelson River. It is 264 mi (425 km) long, up to 68 mi (109 km) wide, and has an area of 9,416 sq mi (24,387 sq km). The Canadian explorer Pierre La Verendrye visited the lake in 1733. With an average depth of 50 ft (15 m), it is important for shipping, commercial fishing, and recreation.

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Lake, south-central South Island, New Zealand. The S-shaped lake measures 48 mi (77 km) by 3 mi (5 km) and has an area of 113 sq mi (293 sq km) and a maximum depth of 1,240 ft (378 m). It receives the Dart, Rees, Greenstone, and Von rivers and empties by the Kawarau River, a tributary of the Clutha River.

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Lake, Ghana. One of the world's largest artificial lakes, it was formed in 1965 when the Akosombo Dam dammed the Volta River and created a reservoir that extends about 250 mi (400 km) upstream to beyond the former confluence of the Black Volta and White Volta rivers. It covers 3,283 sq mi (8,502 sq km), or 3.6percnt of Ghana's area. It is a major fishing ground and provides irrigation water for farmland in the Accra plains. The dam generates enough hydroelectric power to supply most of Ghana's electricity needs.

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Largest lake in Africa and chief reservoir of the Nile River, east-central Africa. The southern half lies in Tanzania, the northern half in Uganda; it borders Kenya in the northeast. With an area of 26,828 sq mi (69,484 sq km), it is the second largest freshwater lake in the world (after Lake Superior in North America). It is about 210 mi (337 km) long, 150 mi (240 km) wide, and up to 270 ft (82 m) deep. Though the Kagera River is its largest tributary, the most important source of water for the lake is rainfall. Its only outlet is the Victoria Nile. John Hanning Speke, searching for the source of the Nile in 1858, was the first European to sight it. He named it for Queen Victoria; the Arabs had called it Ukerewe. Henry Morton Stanley circumnavigated it in 1875. It became a reservoir when the water level was raised after completion of Owen Falls Dam (now the Nalubaale Dam) in 1954.

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Salt lake, eastern Anatolia. The largest lake in Turkey, it covers an area of 1,434 sq mi (3,713 sq km) and is more than 74 mi (119 km) across at its widest point. Its greatest depth exceeds 330 ft (100 m). It is fed by precipitation and meltwater as well as by several small tributaries. It has no apparent outlet, and its brackish waters are unsuitable for either drinking or irrigation.

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Lake, Carabobo and Aragua states, northern Venezuela. Its total area of 141 sq mi (364 sq km) makes it the second largest natural lake in Venezuela, after Lake Maracaibo. It lies in an agricultural region and popular resort area.

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Shallow, saline lake, northwestern Iran. The largest lake in the Middle East, it covers an area that varies from 2,000 to 2,300 sq mi (5,200 to 6,000 sq km). It is about 87 mi (140 km) long and 25–35 mi (40–55 km) wide, with a maximum depth of 53 ft (16 m). There is a cluster of about 50 tiny islands at its southern part. Fed by three rivers, it has no outlet. It has been protected since 1967.

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Lake, mainly in northern Kenya. The fourth largest of the eastern African lakes, it lies 1,230 ft (375 m) above sea level in the Great Rift Valley and covers an area of 2,473 sq mi (6,405 sq km). The three main islands in the lake are volcanic. The lake is relatively shallow; its greatest recorded depth is 240 ft (73 m). Having no outlet, the lake's waters are brackish. Sudden storms are frequent, rendering navigation treacherous. It is a rich reservoir of fish.

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Freshwater lake, northern Israel. It is 13 mi (21 km) long and 7 mi (11 km) wide; it lies about 700 ft (212 m) below sea level and receives most of its inflow from the Jordan River. The region has been inhabited for millennia: archaeological finds dating to some 500,000 years ago are among the oldest in the Middle East. In the 1st century AD, the region was rich and populated; Christians know it as the scene of many episodes in the life of Jesus. Today the lake's waters irrigate the surrounding agricultural region. Modern health resorts have grown up, and the baths at Tiberias are among Israel's winter resort attractions.

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Lake, central Mexico. Originally one of the five lakes of the Valley of Mexico, Texcoco has been drained by channels and a tunnel to the Pánuco River since the early 17th century. It now occupies only a small area surrounded by salt marshes just east of Mexico City. Tenochtitlán, the Aztec capital, stood on islands in old Lake Texcoco and was connected to the mainland by causeways.

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Lake, central North Island, New Zealand. The largest lake in New Zealand, it is 234 sq mi (606 sq km) in area and covers the remains of several volcanic craters. The Waikato River flows into and out of it. Numerous geothermal springs on the lake's borders are used for health resorts and for generating electricity. Tongariro National Park, to the southwest, was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1990; the region is a major tourist attraction.

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Lake, central Africa. Located on the boundary between Tanzania and Congo (Kinshasa), it is the longest freshwater lake in the world, 410 mi (660 km) long, and the second deepest, 4,710 ft (1,436 m) deep. Fed by several rivers, it tends to be brackish. Oil palms and rice grow along its steep shores; hippopotamuses and crocodiles abound. It was first visited by Europeans, searching for the source of the Nile, in 1858.

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Lake, U.S. and Canada. The largest of the five Great Lakes, Superior is the world's largest freshwater lake. It is 383 mi (616 km) long and 160 mi (258 km) at its widest, with an area of 31,800 sq mi (82,362 sq km) and depths reaching 1,330 ft (405 m). Lake Superior is known for its picturesque coastline and its numerous shipwrecks; its islands include Isle Royale. The head of the Great Lakes–Saint Lawrence Seaway system, it is connected to Lake Huron at its southeastern end via the Sault Ste. Marie locks. Ships transport grain, flour, and iron ore during the eight-month navigation season. The French Jesuit missionary Claude-Jean Allouez charted the lake in 1667. The region came under British control (1763–83) and remained in British hands until 1817, when the American Fur Co. took over south of the Canadian border.

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Lake, southeastern Ontario, Canada. Located between Georgian Bay and Lake Ontario north of Toronto, Lake Simcoe is 287 sq mi (743 sq km) in area. Numerous small streams and the Trent Canal feed the lake, which is 30 mi (48 km) long and contains several islands; the largest, Georgina, is an Indian reserve. The lake is a popular summer vacation area.

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Largest lake in the Balkan Peninsula. Located on the frontier between Montenegro and Albania, it has an area of 150 sq mi (390 sq km). It was formerly an arm of the Adriatic Sea. Steep mountains, plains, and marshland border the lake, as do many small villages that are noted for their old monasteries and fortresses.

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City (pop., 2000: 181,743), capital of Utah, U.S. Located on the Jordan River, near the southeastern end of Great Salt Lake, it was founded in 1847 by Brigham Young and a group of 148 Mormons as a refuge from religious persecution. It was known as Great Salt Lake City until 1868. It prospered from rail connections to become a hub of western commerce and became the state capital in 1896. The largest city in the state, it lies at an altitude of 4,390 ft (1,338 m). It is a commercial centre for nearby mining operations and has diversified manufacturing industries. It is the headquarters of the Mormon Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which influences the social, economic, political, and cultural life of the state and region. It is the site of the Mormon Temple and Tabernacle. It was the host city of the 2002 Winter Olympic Games.

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Lake, south-central Quebec, Canada. A shallow lake, it has an area of 387 sq mi (1,003 sq km) and discharges into the Saguenay River. In the 20th century logging operations on its feeder streams led to the establishment of large paper mills on the lake. Since 1926 the lake's seasonal fluctuations have been controlled by two hydroelectric dams. It is a tourist resort centre famous for its salmon fishing.

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Lake, forming part of the boundary between Michigan, U.S., and Ontario, Canada. Roughly circular, with an area of 467 sq mi (1,210 sq km), it connects with the St. Clair River and Lake Huron to the north and with the Detroit River and Lake Erie to the south. It is in a popular summer recreation area. Suburbs of Detroit lie on its western shore.

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Narrow lake astride the Canadian-U.S. border, between Minnesota and northwestern Ontario. Rainy Lake is about 50 mi (80 km) long and has an area of 360 sq mi (932 sq km). Its shores are irregular and deeply indented, and it contains more than 500 islands. The region is the site of several Indian reservations and is popular for hunting, fishing, and canoeing.

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Lake on the boundary between Macedonia, Albania, and Greece. It is 14 mi (23 km) long, 8 mi (13 km) wide, 2,800 ft (853 m) above sea level, and it drains northwest into Lake Ohrid through a subterranean channel. South of it is Little Prespa Lake, which contains the island of St. Achilius; the island was an early capital of Bulgarian Tsar Samuel in the 10th century. It became a tourist and fishing centre in the 1970s.

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Lake, southeastern Louisiana, U.S. It is 40 mi (64 km) long and 25 mi (40 km) wide, with an area of 630 sq mi (1,631 sq km). More a tidal lagoon than a lake, it is brackish and teems with game fish. It is connected through Lake Borgne with the Gulf of Mexico and by canal with the Mississippi River. It is spanned by the Pontchartrain Causeway, two parallel road bridges which cross the lake north of New Orleans and, at nearly 24 mi (39 km) in length, are the longest overwater bridges in the world.

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Lake, north-central Europe, forming the boundary between Estonia and Russia. Lake Peipsi is 60 mi (97 km) long and 31 mi (50 km) wide, and it is frozen for half of the year. In 1242 the Russians, under Alexander Nevsky, defeated the Teutonic Knights (see Teutonic Order) on the frozen lake in the “Battle on the Ice,” forcing the order to relinquish claims to Russian lands.

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Lake, south-central Missouri, U.S. One of the largest man-made lakes in the U.S., it is located in the scenic Ozark Mountains. It is about 125 mi (200 km) long, with an area of 93 sq mi (242 sq km). It is formed by the Bagnell Dam in the Osage River. The area of Lake of the Ozarks State Park has recreational fishing and water sport facilities and is a popular resort destination. Nearby are several limestone caverns.

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Smallest and easternmost of the Great Lakes of North America. Bounded by New York and Ontario, and with the U.S.-Canada border passing through it, the lake is roughly elliptical; its major axis, 193 mi (311 km) long, lies nearly east to west, and its greatest width is 53 mi (85 km). The Niagara River is the lake's main feeder. There are five islands at its eastern end, where the lake discharges into the St. Lawrence River near Kingston, Ont. The Welland Canal and the Niagara River connect it to Lake Erie to the southwest. It was visited by Samuel de Champlain in 1615; its early French name was Lac Frontenac. Ports on the lake include Toronto and Hamilton, Ont., and Rochester and Oswego, N.Y.

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Lake, northwestern Russia. Located between Lake Ladoga and the White Sea, it is the second-largest lake in Europe. It has an area of 3,753 sq mi (9,720 sq km) and is 154 mi (248 km) long. It empties into the Svir River and is frozen for about half of each year. It is connected with the Baltic and White seas by canal and with the Volga River basin by a waterway, enabling it to play an important part in international trade and transport.

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Lake, southeastern Florida, U.S. It is the third largest freshwater lake wholly within the country. It drains to the sea through the Everglades. It is a remnant of the prehistoric Pamlico Sea, and its name means “Big Water” in the language of the Hitchiti Indians. There is a Seminole reservation on the lake's northwestern shore.

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Lake, southeastern Ontario, Canada. Located midway between the Ottawa River and Georgian Bay, it is 50 mi (80 km) long and 30 mi (48 km) wide, with an area of 321 sq mi (832 sq km). A remnant of glacial Lake Algonquin, it contains many islands. The French River drains the lake as it flows west into Georgian Bay. It was discovered by Étienne Brûlé circa 1610 and was later a fur-trading route linking the Ottawa River with the upper Great Lakes.

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Lake, Ontario, Canada. Located north of Lake Superior and northeast of Thunder Bay, it is about 70 mi (110 km) long and 50 mi (80 km) wide and has an area of 1,870 sq mi (4,840 sq km). It lies at an elevation of 1,050 ft (320 m) and has a maximum depth of 540 ft (165 m). Its Indian name means “deep, clear water.” It is studded with many wooded islands, and large bays characterize its shoreline. Its outlet is the Nipigon River, which flows into Lake Superior.

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Lake, southwestern Nicaragua. It is 102 mi (164 km) long, with a surface area of about 3,100 sq mi (8,000 sq km). The largest freshwater lake between the U.S. and Peru, it is connected to Lake Managua by the Tipitapa River and is drained by the San Juan River. It is the only freshwater lake in the world containing marine animal life, including sharks, swordfish, and tarpon. Its largest island, Ometepe, is the preeminent site in Nicaragua for pre-Columbian archaeological finds.

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Shallow lake, northwestern Botswana, north of the Kalahari Desert. It was a large lake, estimated at more than 170 mi (275 km) in circumference when the explorer David Livingstone sighted it in 1849. The lake varies in size with the amount of rainfall, and, although it is much smaller today than in Livingstone's time, it is rich in birdlife.

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Lake, eastern Austria and northwestern Hungary. The shallow lake was formerly entirely within Hungary, but in 1922 the northern two-thirds were transferred to Austria. Formed during the Pleistocene Epoch, it is Austria's lowest point, 377 ft (115 m) above sea level. Heavy reed growth along its shores supports many species of birds, which are protected by an international sanctuary and a biological station.

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Crater lake in the Alban Hills, southeast of Rome, Italy. Its area is about 0.67 sq mi (1.7 sq km), and it is 110 ft (34 m) deep. Nearby were a temple and grove sacred to the goddess Diana. Two ships dating from the reign of Caligula were raised from the lake bottom in the 1920s but were burned by the retreating German army in 1944, toward the end of World War II.

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Lake, southern Egypt and northern Sudan. About 300 mi (480 km) long, it was formed in the 1960s by the construction of the Aswan High Dam in order to control the annual floods of the Nile River, whose waters now feed the lake. Its waters, when discharged downstream, have brought some 1,250 sq mi (3,240 sq km) of additional land under irrigation. Its formation flooded a number of archaeological sites, including those found at Abu Simbel. In The Sudan it is known as Lake Nubia.

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Lake, central Africa. It is located on the boundary between southeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (Zaire) and Zambia, west of the southern tip of Lake Tanganyika. Part of the Congo River system, it is 76 mi (122 km) long and has a surface area of 1,900 sq mi (4,920 sq km). The Luapula River, a headstream of the Congo River, flows through it. The Bangweulu Swamps adjoin the lake.

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Lake, east-central Africa. Lying at an altitude of 2,021 ft (616 m), it is 100 mi (160 km) long and has an average width of about 20 mi (32 km). In the southwest, the Semliki River brings into the lake the waters of Lake Edward; at its northeastern corner, just below Murchison Falls, it receives the Victoria Nile from Lake Victoria. In 1864 the lake's first European visitor, Samuel Baker, named it after Queen Victoria's consort. Initially part of Uganda, it now forms part of the Uganda-Congo border.

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Third largest of the five Great Lakes and the only one lying wholly within the U.S. Bordered by the states of Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, and Indiana, it connects with Lake Huron through the Straits of Mackinac in the north. It is 321 mi (517 km) long and up to 118 mi (190 km) wide, with a maximum depth of 923 ft (281 m); it occupies an area of 22,300 sq mi (57,757 sq km). The first European to discover it was the French explorer Jean Nicolet in 1634; the explorer La Salle brought the first sailing ship there in 1679. It now attracts international shipping as part of the Great Lakes–St. Lawrence Seaway. The name is derived from the Algonquian word michigami or misschiganin, meaning “big lake.”

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Reservoir of the Hoover Dam, on the Arizona-Nevada border in the U.S. One of the largest man-made lakes in the world, it was formed by the damming of the Colorado River. Lake Mead is 115 mi (185 km) long and 1–10 mi (1.6–16 km) wide; it has a capacity of over 31 million acre ft (38 billion cubic m), with a surface area of 229 sq mi (593 sq km). It was named after Elwood Mead, commissioner of reclamation. Lake Mead National Recreation Area (established 1936) has an area of 2,338 sq mi (6,055 sq km) and extends 240 mi (386 km) along the river.

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Inlet of the Caribbean Sea, northwestern Venezuela. The largest natural lake in South America, it occupies an area of 5,130 sq mi (13,280 sq km), extending southward for 130 mi (210 km) from the Gulf of Venezuela and reaching a width of 75 mi (121 km). Many rivers flow into the lake, notably the Catatumbo River. It is in one of the world's richest oil-producing regions, which supplies about two-thirds of Venezuela's total petroleum output. Its oil fields are located along the eastern shore, extending 20 mi (32 km) into the lake.

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Lake, south-central Manitoba, Canada. Located northwest of Winnipeg, it drains into Lake Winnipeg. It is more than 125 mi (200 km) long and up to 28 mi (45 km) wide, with an area of 1,785 sq mi (4,624 sq km). It was discovered in 1738 by Pierre La Vérendrye, who named it Lac des Prairies. The name Manitoba is believed to come from the Algonquian word maniot-bau or maniot-wapau (“strait of the spirit”).

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Lake, northern Italy and southern Switzerland, bordered on the north by the Swiss Alps. Occupying an area of 82 sq mi (212 sq km), it is Italy's second largest lake. It is 34 mi (54 km) long, with a maximum width of 7 mi (11 km) and a maximum depth of 1,220 ft (372 m). Traversed from north to south by the Ticino River, it is also fed by the Tresa River from Lake Lugano on the east. It is a popular resort area.

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Lake, Great Rift Valley, southern Kenya, east of Lake Victoria. It occupies an area of about 40 sq mi (104 sq km). Its bed consists almost entirely of soda deposits, which dye the waters a vivid pink.

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Lake, central Switzerland. It is 24 mi (39 km) long and 0.5 to 2 mi (0.8 to 3 km) wide, with an area of 44 sq mi (114 sq km). It has a maximum depth of 702 ft (214 m). The “Cross of Lucerne” is formed by its four main basins, which are joined by narrow channels. Named after the city of Lucerne at its western end, it is in a region of resorts and tourist attractions.

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Lake, central Alberta, Canada. Located northwest of Edmonton and south of Great Slave Lake, it occupies an area of 451 sq mi (1,168 sq km) and drains into the Athabasca River via the Lesser Slave River. Its name refers to the Slave (Dogrib) Indians, who once inhabited its shores.

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Village (pop., 2000: 2,638), northeastern New York, U.S., on Mirror Lake and Lake Placid, in the Adirondack Mountains. The site was settled in 1800, but it was abandoned after crop failures. Resettled during the 1840s, it was promoted in 1850 as a summer resort, and Melvil Dewey founded the Lake Placid Club there in 1895. It is a year-round recreation area with numerous hotels, golf courses, ski resorts, and mountain scenery. It was the scene of the Olympic Games in 1932 and 1980.

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Lake, northeastern New York, U.S. It is 32 mi (51 km) long and 1–4 mi (1.6–6.4 km) wide and is connected to Lake Champlain through a series of waterfalls. In the foothills of the Adirondacks, it is noted for its scenic beauty and is a popular resort area. Memorialized in James Fenimore Cooper's novels as Lake Horicon, the real lake was the scene of numerous battles during the French and Indian War and the American Revolution. Fort Ticonderoga is located on the falls at the lake's outlet.

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Mountainous region, administrative county of Cumbria, northwestern England. Roughly coextensive with Lake District National Park, the country's largest, it occupies an area of 866 sq mi (2,243 sq km). It contains numerous lakes, including Windermere (England's largest), Grasmere, and Coniston Water, as well as England's highest mountains, the loftiest being Scafell Pike, which rises to 3,210 ft (978 m). The district was home to several English poets, including William Wordsworth, Robert Southey, and Samuel Taylor Coleridge, who celebrated its landscape. It became a national park in 1951.

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National park, southern Alaska, U.S. Located on the western shore of Cook Inlet, it was proclaimed a national monument in 1978 and a national park in 1980. Its total area is 3,653,000 acres (1,478,300 hectares). Lake Clark, more than 40 mi (65 km) long, is the largest of its glacial lakes; it feeds rivers that provide the most important spawning ground for red salmon in North America. The park includes glaciers, waterfalls, and active volcanoes.

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Lake, northwestern Russia. The largest lake in Europe, it covers an area of 6,700 sq mi (17,600 sq km). It is 136 mi (219 km) long and has an average width of 51 mi (82 km); its greatest depth is 754 ft (230 m). It contains 660 islands of more than 2.5 acres (1 hectare) in area. Its outlet is the Neva River, in the southwestern corner. Formerly divided between the U.S.S.R. and Finland, it now lies entirely within Russia. During the Siege of Leningrad (1941–44) in World War II, the lake was the lifeline that connected the city with the rest of the Soviet Union.

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Lake, northwestern Minnesota, U.S. Occupying an area of 1.8 sq mi (4.7 sq km), it is located 1,475 ft (450 m) above sea level. Henry Rowe Schoolcraft's theory that Lake Itasca is the source of the Mississippi River has been widely accepted. He is generally credited with originating the name Itasca, but Indian legend mentions I-tesk-ka, the daughter of Hiawatha, whose tears of anguish at being spirited away to the netherworld were the source of the Mississippi.

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Lake, U.S. and Canada. The second-largest of the Great Lakes of North America, it is bounded by Michigan and Ontario, and is about 206 mi (330 km) long with an area of 23,000 sq mi (59,570 sq km). Inflow comes from Lake Superior, Lake Michigan, and numerous streams; the lake discharges at its southern end into Lake Erie. It contains many islands, including Mackinac, and Saginaw Bay indents the Michigan coast. As part of the St. Lawrence Seaway, it supports heavy commercial traffic from April to December. The first of the Great Lakes seen by Europeans, it was explored by the French (1615–79), who named it after the Huron Indians.

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(born circa 1735, Ganawaugus, N.Y.—died Aug. 10, 1815, Onondaga, N.Y., U.S.) Seneca Indian chief. He led a somewhat dissolute life before becoming seriously ill in 1799; on recovering, he reported a vision revealing the will of the Great Spirit. He developed a religion he called Gai'wiio (Good Message) that combined elements of Christianity and Indian beliefs; as an itinerant preacher, he urged his people to refrain from adultery, drunkenness, laziness, and witchcraft. The religion revitalized the demoralized Iroquois, and it was adhered to by many into the 20th century.

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Lake, south-central Northwest Territories, Canada. Named for the Slave Indians, it is fed by several rivers, including the Slave, and drained by the Mackenzie River into the Arctic Ocean. The lake, with an area of 11,031 sq mi (28,570 sq km), is the fifth largest in North America. It is 300 mi (500 km) long and 30–140 mi (50–225 km) wide, with a maximum depth of more than 2,000 ft (600 m). While supporting a fishing industry, the lake is an integral part of the Mackenzie River waterway.

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Lake, northern Utah, U.S. It is the largest inland body of salt water in the Western Hemisphere and one of the most saline in the world. It fluctuates greatly in size, depending on rates of evaporation and the flow of the rivers into it. Its surface area has varied from about 2,400 sq mi (6,200 sq km) at its highest levels in 1873 and the mid 1980s to about 950 sq mi (2,460 sq km) at its low level in 1963. At times of median water level, it is generally less than 15 ft (4.5 m) deep. Surrounded by stretches of sand, salt land, and marsh, the lake remains isolated, though in recent years it has become important as a source of minerals, as a beach and water-sports attraction, and as a wildlife preserve.

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Lake, Northwest Territories, Canada. Lying astride the Arctic Circle, it was visited before 1800 by North West Company traders and later named for the bears that inhabited its shores. Containing many small islands, Great Bear Lake is roughly 200 mi (320 km) long and 25–110 mi (40–175 km) wide and has a maximum depth of 1,356 ft (413 m). It is the largest lake entirely within Canada and the fourth largest in North America. The lake's waters abound with fish, including the speckled trout.

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Lake, on the border of southwestern Switzerland and southeastern France. About 134 sq mi (347 sq km) of the lake's area is Swiss and 90 sq mi (234 sq km) French. Lying at an elevation of 1,220 ft (372 m), it is 45 mi (72 km) long with an average width of 5 mi (8 km). It is formed by the Rhône River, which enters at the eastern end and leaves at the western end through the city of Geneva. The water level is subject to fluctuations known as seiches, in which the lake's water mass rhythmically swings from shore to shore.

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Lake, northern Italy. Largest of the Italian lakes, it is 34 mi (54 km) long and 2 to 11 mi (3 to 18 km) wide, with a shoreline of 77.5 mi (125 km). It borders Lombardy, Veneto, and Trentino–Alto Adige. Separated from the Adige River valley by the narrow ridge of Mount Baldo, it is fed by the Sarca River at its northern end, while the Mincio flows out toward the Po River to the south. The lake is encircled by the Gardesana scenic route, opened in 1931. Well sheltered by the Alps to the north, Lake Garda has a temperate Mediterranean climate. It is a popular resort area.

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Salt lake, northeastern South Australia. With a total area of 3,700 sq mi (9,600 sq km), Lake Eyre is the lowest point in Australia, 50 ft (15 m) below sea level. The lake consists of two sections: Lake Eyre North, 90 mi (144 km) long and 40 mi (65 km) wide, is joined by the narrow Goyder Channel to Lake Eyre South, which is 40 mi (65 km) long and about 15 mi (24 km) wide. Lake Eyre is normally dry, and it fills completely only (on average) twice a century. When filled, the lake takes about two years to dry up again. The region is within Lake Eyre National Park.

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Lake, in U.S. and Canada. The fourth largest of the five Great Lakes, it lies between lakes Huron and Ontario and forms the boundary between Canada (Ontario) and the U.S. (Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York). It is 240 mi (388 km) long and has a maximum width of 57 mi (92 km), with a surface area of 9,910 sq mi (22,666 sq km). The Detroit River carries inflow from Lake Huron to the west, and the lake discharges at its eastern end through the Niagara River. It is an important link in the St. Lawrence Seaway; its ports handle steel, iron ore, coal, and grain. The area was once inhabited by Erie Indians; when the French arrived in the 17th century they found the Iroquois living there. The British were in the region in the 18th century, and the U.S. shores were settled after 1796. It was the site of the Battle of Lake Erie, an important engagement of the War of 1812.

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Lake, eastern Africa. One of the great lakes of the western Great Rift Valley, it lies on the border of Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda and is 48 mi (77 km) long and 26 mi (42 km) wide. On the northeast it is connected to the smaller Lake George. Lake Edward empties north through the Semliki River to Lake Albert. The lake abounds in fish; wildlife on its shores is protected within Virunga National Park and Queen Elizabeth National Park. It was named by Henry Morton Stanley, who visited the lake in 1888–89.

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Lake, bordering Switzerland, Germany, and Austria. Occupying an old glacier basin at an elevation of 1,299 ft (396 m), it has an area of 209 sq mi (541 sq km) and an average depth of 295 ft (90 m). It forms part of the course of the Rhine River, and by the Middle Ages it was a major traffic hub. Spectacular Alpine scenery makes the lakeshore a popular resort area. The remains of Neolithic lake dwellings are found in the area.

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Lake, Lombardy, northern Italy. It lies at an elevation of 653 ft (199 m) in a depression surrounded by limestone and granite mountains. It is 29 mi (47 km) long and up to 2.5 mi (4 km) wide, with an area of 56 sq mi (146 sq km) and a maximum depth of 1,358 ft (414 m). Famous for its natural beauty, its shores have many resorts.

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Lake, southern Germany. Located southeast of Munich, it lies 1,699 ft (518 m) above sea level, and drains through the Alz River into the Inn River. At 9 mi (15 km) long and 5 mi (8 km) wide, it is Bavaria's largest lake. One of its three islands has a Benedictine monastery and a royal castle modeled on the palace at Versailles.

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Lake between Vermont and New York, U.S. Located on the states' northern boundaries and extending into Canada about 6 mi (10 km), it is about 125 mi (200 km) long and has an area of 430 sq mi (1,115 sq km). It was visited in 1609 by Samuel de Champlain. In 1776 it was the scene of the first British-American naval battle and in 1814 of a U.S. naval victory over the British. A link in the waterway between New York City's harbour and the lower St. Lawrence River, it is used extensively for commercial and pleasure-boat navigation.

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Lake, west-central Africa. Located at the juncture of the boundaries of Nigeria, Niger, Chad, and Cameroon, the lake covered 9,900 sq mi (25,600 sq km) in the mid-20th century. Its water level has since dropped—owing to severe drought, the desertification of the surrounding Sahel region, and irrigation projects—and, by the beginning of the 21st century, the lake had shrunk to 580 sq mi (1,500 sq km). The lake is fed by the Chari River.

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Salt lake, Nova Scotia, Canada. Located on Cape Breton Island, it is about 50 mi (80 km) long and has an area of 360 sq mi (932 sq km). Its extension, Little Bras d'Or, connects it to the Atlantic Ocean on the north, while a man-made canal connects it to the Atlantic on the south. The lake is a popular summer resort area.

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Lake, northern Zambia. Located southeast of Lake Mweru and southwest of Lake Tanganyika at an elevation of 3,740 ft (1,140 m), it is about 45 mi (72 km) long and, with its adjacent swamps, covers an area of 3,800 sq mi (9,840 sq km). Its outlet is the Luapula, a headstream of the Congo. It has three inhabited islands. David Livingstone, the first European to visit the lake, died there in 1873.

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Lake, western central Canada. It extends 208 mi (335 km), crossing the Alberta-Saskatchewan boundary. On the southwest it receives the Athabasca River, and on the northwest it discharges into the Slave River. It is important for its commercial fishing.

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