Catemaco lake
|
Lago Catemaco Laguna Catemaco, Laguna de Catemaco |
||
|---|---|---|
|
||
| Lago Catemaco with the volcanic mountains of the Sierra de los Tuxtlas in the background | ||
| Geographical location | Veracruz , Mexico | |
| Drain | Río Grande de Catemaco → Río San Juan → Río Papaloapan | |
| Places on the shore | Catemaco | |
| Data | ||
| Coordinates | 18 ° 24 ′ N , 95 ° 6 ′ W | |
|
||
| Altitude above sea level | 340 m | |
| surface | 72.5 km² | |
| length | 10.25 km | |
| width | 13.32 km | |
| volume | 0.553 km³ | |
| scope | 49.7 km | |
| Maximum depth | 22 m | |
| Middle deep | 7.5 m | |
| Catchment area | 323 km² | |
The Lago Catemaco (also Laguna (de) Catemaco ) is the third largest natural freshwater lake in Mexico ; it is located in the state of Veracruz .
location
The approximately 72 km², but on average only 7.5 m deep Lake Catemaco is located near the volcanic mountains of the Sierra de los Tuxtlas about 175 km southeast of the city of Veracruz and only 11 km east of the city of San Andrés Tuxtla ; although the city of Coatzacoalcos is only about 50 km southeast, the drive there is more than 150 km.
Islands
In the polymictic Lago Catemaco there are two larger and about ten smaller islands. The Isla Agaltepec in front of the city of Catemaco was a pre-Hispanic place of worship ; In the 1980s, a colony of howler monkeys was established there by the University of Veracruz , but it has since disappeared. Macaques from Thailand live on Isla de los Monos today .
history
The lake was probably formed when the Tuxtla volcanoes rose from the sea several million years ago and blocked the drainage route of the Río Grande de Catemaco , which is now an indirect tributary of the Río Papaloapan . Although the Tuxtla Mountains are surrounded by cultural sites of the Olmecs , no archaeologically usable finds have been made on the shores of the lake.
economy
Due to the fertilizer input from the fields in its vicinity, Lake Catemaco is very rich in plants and fish - around 2000 tons of fish are caught annually with small fishing boats (mainly cichlids of the tilapia genus imported from Africa ). The lake and the town of Catemaco have tourist potential, but they can still be developed.
Surroundings
Lake Catemaco is located in the heartland of the Olmec culture, whose monumental heads made of volcanic basalt lava are world famous. While there is not much to see at the excavation sites themselves, the museums of Tres Zapotes and in the town of Villahermosa ( Parque-Museo de La Venta ) located approx. 300 km to the east show important finds.
Others
Lake Catemaco was the location for scenes from two films:
- Medicine Man: The Last Days of Eden with Sean Connery (1992)
- Apocalypto by and with Mel Gibson (2006)
