Kilconquhar Loch
Encyclopedia
Kilconquhar Loch kɨˈnjʌxər lɒx is a Scottish
freshwater loch
.
This small shallow loch is a Site of Special Scientific Interest
(SSSI) and is located beside the village of the same name in East Fife
, within a mile of the coastal village of Elie
.
The loch appears to be a comparatively recent feature, the earliest reference being to "the gret loch callit of auld the Reidmyre" (Scots: red or reed peat bog) in 1599 and referred to as Keanwchar Loch by 1654 in Blaeu's
Atlas Novus
. Samples of the loch bed support its origin as a bog and there is archaeological evidence and a local tradition that fuel was extracted. Westward outflow to the Cocklemill Burn is said to have been blocked by sand in 1624 or 1625 but it is drained to the south-east by the largely underground Loch Run into Elie harbour and eastwards to the Inverie Burn.
It is an approximate rounded square in shape, and is unusual in that it has no visible inflow, yet is not stagnant. It is the subject of a study by St. Andrews University. It has been theorised that an underground spring
feeds into the loch, maintaining a degree of freshness sufficient to offset its stagnation.
In former times it was reported to produce large pike
and eel
s, although this is now no longer verifiable as no fishing is allowed, due to its SSSI status.
Large numbers of overwinter
ing wildfowl
use Kilconquhar Loch as a roost.
It was charted during the Bathymetrical Survey of the Fresh-Water Lochs of Scotland, constructed under the direction of Sir John Murray
and Laurence Pullar during the years 1897 to 1909.
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
freshwater loch
Loch
Loch is the Irish and Scottish Gaelic word for a lake or a sea inlet. It has been anglicised as lough, although this is pronounced the same way as loch. Some lochs could also be called a firth, fjord, estuary, strait or bay...
.
This small shallow loch is a Site of Special Scientific Interest
Site of Special Scientific Interest
A Site of Special Scientific Interest is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom. SSSIs are the basic building block of site-based nature conservation legislation and most other legal nature/geological conservation designations in Great Britain are based upon...
(SSSI) and is located beside the village of the same name in East Fife
Fife
Fife is a council area and former county of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries to Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire...
, within a mile of the coastal village of Elie
Elie and Earlsferry
Elie and Earlsferry is a town and former royal burgh in Fife, Scotland, situated within the East Neuk beside Chapel Ness on the north coast of the Firth of Forth, eight miles east of Leven...
.
The loch appears to be a comparatively recent feature, the earliest reference being to "the gret loch callit of auld the Reidmyre" (Scots: red or reed peat bog) in 1599 and referred to as Keanwchar Loch by 1654 in Blaeu's
Joan Blaeu
Joan Blaeu was a Dutch cartographer.He was born in Alkmaar, the son of cartographer Willem Blaeu.In 1620 he became a doctor of law but he joined the work of his father. In 1635 they published the Atlas Novus in two volumes...
Atlas Novus
Atlas Maior
The Atlas Maior is a comprehensive world atlas, conceived by Willem Blaeu of Amsterdam, but compiled by his son Joan Blaeu, and completed in 1665...
. Samples of the loch bed support its origin as a bog and there is archaeological evidence and a local tradition that fuel was extracted. Westward outflow to the Cocklemill Burn is said to have been blocked by sand in 1624 or 1625 but it is drained to the south-east by the largely underground Loch Run into Elie harbour and eastwards to the Inverie Burn.
It is an approximate rounded square in shape, and is unusual in that it has no visible inflow, yet is not stagnant. It is the subject of a study by St. Andrews University. It has been theorised that an underground spring
Spring (hydrosphere)
A spring—also known as a rising or resurgence—is a component of the hydrosphere. Specifically, it is any natural situation where water flows to the surface of the earth from underground...
feeds into the loch, maintaining a degree of freshness sufficient to offset its stagnation.
In former times it was reported to produce large pike
Esox
Esox is a genus of freshwater fish, the only living genus in the family Esocidae — the esocids which were endemic to North America, Europe and Eurasia during the Paleogene through present.The type species is E. lucius, the northern pike...
and eel
Eel
Eels are an order of fish, which consists of four suborders, 20 families, 111 genera and approximately 800 species. Most eels are predators...
s, although this is now no longer verifiable as no fishing is allowed, due to its SSSI status.
Large numbers of overwinter
Overwinter
To overwinter is to pass through or wait out the winter season, or to pass through that period of the year when “winter” conditions make normal activity or even survival difficult or near impossible...
ing wildfowl
Anatidae
Anatidae is the biological family of birds that includes ducks, geese and swans. The family has a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on all the world's continents except Antarctica and on most of the world's islands and island groups...
use Kilconquhar Loch as a roost.
It was charted during the Bathymetrical Survey of the Fresh-Water Lochs of Scotland, constructed under the direction of Sir John Murray
John Murray (oceanographer)
Sir John Murray KCB FRS FRSE FRSGS was a pioneering Scottish oceanographer, marine biologist and limnologist.-Early life:...
and Laurence Pullar during the years 1897 to 1909.