Butrintsee

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Butrintsee
Liqeni i Butrinti.jpg
The Butrintsee from the north
Geographical location Albania
Tributaries originally: Bistrica
Drain Vivar Canal
Places on the shore Butrint
Location close to the shore Ksamil , Saranda
Data
Coordinates 39 ° 47 '0 "  N , 20 ° 2' 0"  E Coordinates: 39 ° 47 '0 "  N , 20 ° 2' 0"  E
Butrintsee (Albania)
Butrintsee
surface 16.3 km²
length 7.1 km
width 3.3 km
Maximum depth 21 m

particularities

Ramsar Sanctuary; southern end of the Butrint National Park

Template: Infobox Lake / Maintenance / EVIDENCE AREA Template: Infobox Lake / Maintenance / EVIDENCE LAKE WIDTH Template: Infobox Lake / Maintenance / EVIDENCE MAX DEPTH

The Lake Butrint ( Albanian  Liqen / -ii Butrintit ) is a salt water - Lagoon in South albania on the coast of the Ionian Sea . The lake is located southeast of Saranda near the ancient sites of Butrint in Qark Vlora , has an area of ​​around 16.3 square kilometers, on average a depth of 14 meters, which reaches a maximum of 21 meters. It is 7.1 kilometers long and up to 3.3 kilometers wide. The salinity of the water varies with the tides .

At the southern end, the lagoon is connected to the sea by the Vivar Canal , which is around two and a half kilometers long . The lake and the surrounding area were formed in the Quaternary . 3000 years ago the area was a sea bay. The marshland south of the natural channel was flooded by the sea for a long time and was gradually replenished by deposits from the Bistrica and Pavlla rivers . By the year 100 the plain was so developed that Romans settled there.

Mussel farming facilities on the west bank
The lake with the village of Ksamil and the Ionian Sea in the foreground

The elongated lake is north of the canal by a narrow headland, consisting of a long, up to 240  m above sea level. A. high range of hills, separated from the sea. The foothills of the 695 meter high Mali i Miles end on the east bank . Until 1958, the lagoon was fed by the Bistrica river coming from the mountains . Shortly before it flows into the northern end of the lake, the watercourse was diverted directly into the sea through the artificial Çuka Canal . It is a permanently layered lake with an oxygen-free, inanimate hypolimnion , while the upper layer is oxygen-rich up to a depth of about eight meters.

The lake is surrounded by large wetlands, especially at the north and south ends, which are sometimes completely under water. Reet areas shape the banks and also clean the flowing water. They are home to various pond rails , the water rail , various reed warblers , for example the great reed warbler , and the little bittern . In contrast to the salt water march between the south end and the sea, the wetlands at the north end are fresh water marches.

Another, small lake is located southeast of the Butrintsee. The Bufisee ( Liqeni i Bufit , sometimes also Rrëza ) is around two kilometers long, on average one meter deep and has the shape of a tapering triangle. On its east bank and north end, the landscape changes into gently rolling hills on the western slope of Mali i Miles . It contained brackish water until the 1960s . While the Bufisee used to be connected to the Butrintsee at its southwest end, the permanent connection is now a canal further north. The water has been more salty since then. The area between the lakes is mostly wetlands that are temporarily under water. The 81 meter high Kalivo hill - used as a settlement since the Bronze Age and in the 6th century BC. Fortified with a 1300 meter long wall - rises from the marshland between the lakes.

The Butrint Lake and the wetlands surrounding it are protected by the Ramsar Convention . The southern end is part of Butrint National Park . The Butrintsee and its surroundings are the habitat of 14 endangered animal species; Nowhere else in Albania have so many bird (246), reptile (25) and amphibian (10) species been found. In addition, 105 species of fish and 39 species of mammals were detected. The Epirus water frog ( Rana epeirotica ), the wide-brimmed turtle ( Testudo marginata ), the western sand boa ( Eryx jaculus ) and the Taurian lizard ( Podarcis taurica jonica ) are only found around the Butrintsee in Albania . Lake and the surrounding area are also an important resting place for migratory birds such as grebes , little grebes , Common Goldeneye , Coot and Pochard . Rare marine species such as the endangered loggerhead turtle and the endangered Mediterranean monk seal , the risk of small freshwater fish Valencia Letourneuxi and birds of prey such as hen harrier and marsh harrier are found in, respectively, around the lake.

Inadequate fresh water supply resulted in a lack of oxygen in the water of the Butrintsee, with toxic gases also being released from the muddy sea bed. In order to stop this process, which is endangering the balance and the fauna in the lake, the freshwater inflow of the lake was increased with various measures. A better water quality could already be determined.

Mussels ( Mytilus galloprovincialis ) have been bred in the lake since 1968 , which meanwhile gave work to 250 people. The production fluctuates between 2000 and approx. 7000 kilograms per year.

Web links

Commons : Lake Butrinti  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Remarks

  1. In Information Sheet on Ramsar Wetlands: Butrint (PDF; 215 kB) the following deviating figures are noted: Area: 16.0 square kilometers; average depth: 11 meters; maximum depth: 21.5 meters; Water volume: 211 × 10 6  cubic meters
  2. In the winter of 2005/06, the eight fishermen on Lake Butrint found one to two hawksbill turtles per month in their nets, cf. Rapid Assessment Survey of important marine turtle and monk seal habitats in the coastal area of ​​Albania. .
  3. Although the Mediterranean monk seal is listed as a inhabitant of the Butrintsee in various documents, its present-day occurrence in Albanian waters is questionable. In Albania, scientists were last able to detect traces on the coast of the Karaburun peninsula in 1999 . But it is also possible that animals from populations in Northern Greece occasionally move to Albania, cf. The Monachus Guardian, November 2001 . In the summer of 2004 two fishermen reported seeing Mediterranean monk seals in the Karaburun area and in the Bay of Saranda, cf. Rapid Assessment Survey of important marine turtle and monk seal habitats in the coastal area of ​​Albania.

Individual evidence

  1. a b c d e Information Sheet on Ramsar Wetlands: Butrint. (PDF; 215 kB) In: ramsar.org. March 20, 2003, accessed January 12, 2016 .
  2. a b Alqiviadh Cullaj, Agim Hasko, Aleko Miho, Ferdinand Schanz, Helmut Brandl, Reinhard Bachofen: The quality of Albanian natural waters and the human impact , in: Environment International 31 (2005)
  3. a b c Wolfgang Fremuth (editor): Albania - Guide to it's Natural Treasures , Verlag Herwig Klemp, Tirana 2000, ISBN 3-931323-06-4
  4. a b c d e f g h Butrint Foundation, Butrint National Park (ed.): Butrint National Park - A guide to the Environment and Walking Trails
  5. Neritan Ceka : Buthrotum - Its History and Monuments , Tirana 2006, ISBN 99943-672-8-5
  6. Valencia letourneuxi in the endangered Red List species the IUCN 2006. Posted by: Crivelli, AJ, 2006. Accessed February 17, 2014.