Lake Skadar
Lake Skadar, also called Lake Scutari or Lake
Shkodër is a lake 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.
It is situated in the south-eastern part of the Republic of
Montenegro, in Zeta-Skadar Valley, and in the karstic terrain of
the southeast Dinaric Alps in Albania. The mountains Lovcen,
Sutorman, Rumija and Tarabosh lie on the southern side of the lake,
while Skadar lowland lies on the eastern shore. Its northern coast
is flat, gradually descending toward the lake, and it is covered
with lush vegetation. The southern coast is steep and
rugged.
Skadar Lake is relatively shallow and the deepest part of the
lake bed sinks below sea level, meaning the lake lies in a
cryptodepression. Those places are named sublacustrine springs or
eyes (“oka”). In this lake about 30 such eyes
have been found. The deepest eye is called Radus, about 60
meters deep (some believe it is deeper then this, while the average
depth of the lake is 6m) and is exceptionally rich with fish.
Next to this eye, other well known eyes are: Karuc (28 meters
deep), Volac (24 meters deep), Krnjicko (24 meters deep), Djukovo,
Kaludjerovo, Bazugursko, Bljaca and Vaskaund.
60 percent of the lake is in Montenegro, 40 percent is in
Albania. Its surface, 6 m (20 ft) above sea level, can vary between
370 km2 (142.9 sq mi) and
530 km2 (204.6 sq mi).
Skadar Lake has a peculiar water regime, with water level
fluctuations of up to five metres. The Moraca River, with its two
tributaries, Zeta and Cijevna/Cemi, contributes 62 percent of the
lake’s water. About 30 percent of it comes from underground
springs called “eyes.” The rest comes directly from the
mountains or from rainfall. The Bojana/Buna and Drini rivers play
an important role. The Bojana/Buna River flows from Skadar Lake at
an average rate of 320 cubic metres per second. Combined with the
flow of the Drini River, the lake drains into the Adriatic Sea at a
rate of 682 cubic metres per second.
The Montenegrin part of the lake and its surrounding area were
declared a national park in 1983. It 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.
In 1996, by Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, it was included in
the Ramsar list of wetlands of
international importance.
To log this Earthcache please send the answers of the following
questions to my e-mail adress in my profile.
1. How long is the shore line of the Montenegrin part of the
lake?
2. How many times per year the lake's water changes
completely?
3. How long is the Moraca-Skadar Lake-Bojana river system?
You dont have to wait for a log permission. I will contact you, if
something is wrong with your answers.
Please post also a photo of you and your GPS-device in front of
the lake.
