Lake Hillier
Encyclopedia
Lake Hillier, is a lake on Middle Island, the largest of the islands and islets that make up the Recherche Archipelago
, Western Australia
. It is the most prominent lacustrine feature on any island of the archipelago and air passengers often take note of it.
The specialty of this lake is its flamboyant color, rose pink. The color is permanent, as it does not alter when the water is taken in a container. The length of the lake is about six hundred meters. A narrow strip of land composed of sand dunes covered by vegetation separates it from the ocean. The lake is surrounded by a rime of white salt
and a dense woodland of Paperbark and Eucalypt
trees with sand dunes separating the lake from the Southern Ocean
to the north.
The island and lake are thought to have been first explored by the Flinders expedition
in 1802. Captain Flinders is said to have observed the pink lake
after ascending the island's peak. John Thistle, the ships master collected some of the lake's water which he found to be saturated with salt .The reason for the lake's color is still under investigation, and so far no one has come up with a reasonable explanation. However, the most probable explanation according to some scientists involves the low nutrient concentrations and different types of bacteria
and algae
that are responsible for the lake's pink color. The lake is one of the natural wonders of Australia.
Archipelago of the Recherche
Archipelago of the Recherche is a group of 105 islands, and over 1200 "obstacles to shipping", off the southern coast of Western Australia. The islands, also known as the Recherche Archipelago, stretch from East to West and to off-shore....
, Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
. It is the most prominent lacustrine feature on any island of the archipelago and air passengers often take note of it.
The specialty of this lake is its flamboyant color, rose pink. The color is permanent, as it does not alter when the water is taken in a container. The length of the lake is about six hundred meters. A narrow strip of land composed of sand dunes covered by vegetation separates it from the ocean. The lake is surrounded by a rime of white salt
Salt
In chemistry, salts are ionic compounds that result from the neutralization reaction of an acid and a base. They are composed of cations and anions so that the product is electrically neutral...
and a dense woodland of Paperbark and Eucalypt
Eucalypt
Eucalypts are woody plants belonging to three closely related genera:Eucalyptus, Corymbia and Angophora.In 1995 new evidence, largely genetic, indicated that some prominent Eucalyptus species were actually more closely related to Angophora than to the other eucalypts; they were split off into the...
trees with sand dunes separating the lake from the Southern Ocean
Southern Ocean
The Southern Ocean comprises the southernmost waters of the World Ocean, generally taken to be south of 60°S latitude and encircling Antarctica. It is usually regarded as the fourth-largest of the five principal oceanic divisions...
to the north.
The island and lake are thought to have been first explored by the Flinders expedition
Matthew Flinders
Captain Matthew Flinders RN was one of the most successful navigators and cartographers of his age. In a career that spanned just over twenty years, he sailed with Captain William Bligh, circumnavigated Australia and encouraged the use of that name for the continent, which had previously been...
in 1802. Captain Flinders is said to have observed the pink lake
Pink lake
A pink lake is a lake that has a red or pink colour due to the presence of algae that produces carotenoids, such as Dunaliella salina.Examples include Pink Lake, near Esperance, Western Australia; Hutt Lagoon in midwest Western Australia; and Lac Rose in...
after ascending the island's peak. John Thistle, the ships master collected some of the lake's water which he found to be saturated with salt .The reason for the lake's color is still under investigation, and so far no one has come up with a reasonable explanation. However, the most probable explanation according to some scientists involves the low nutrient concentrations and different types of bacteria
Bacteria
Bacteria are a large domain of prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micrometres in length, bacteria have a wide range of shapes, ranging from spheres to rods and spirals...
and algae
Algae
Algae are a large and diverse group of simple, typically autotrophic organisms, ranging from unicellular to multicellular forms, such as the giant kelps that grow to 65 meters in length. They are photosynthetic like plants, and "simple" because their tissues are not organized into the many...
that are responsible for the lake's pink color. The lake is one of the natural wonders of Australia.
Source
- Information from: Lake Hillier