Save Urmiyeh Lake

Save Urmiyeh Lake.

Lake Urmia (Azerbaijani: اورمو گؤلو, Persian: دریاچه ارومیه, Daryâcheh-ye Orumiyeh (or Oroumieh), ancient name: Lake Matiene) is a salt lake in northwestern Iran, near Iran's border with Turkey. The lake is between the Iranian provinces of East Azerbaijan and West Azerbaijan, west of the southern portion of the similarly shaped Caspian Sea. It is the largest lake in the Middle East, and the third largest salt water lake on earth, with a surface area of approximately 5,200 km² (2,000 mile²), 140 km (87 mi) length, 55 km (34 mi) width, and 16 m (52 ft) depth.

Lake Urmia (Orumieh in Persian), which lies in northwestern Iran, is home to some 212 species of birds, 41 reptiles, 7 amphibians, and 27 species of mammals, including the Iranian yellow deer.

The construction of a dam on part of the lake and the recent drought has significantly decreased the annual amount of water Orumieh receives. This in turn has increased the salinity of Orumiyeh's water, causing the lake to lose its significance as home to thousands of migratory birds including the large flamingo populations.

The lake is marked by more than a hundred small rocky islands, which are stopover points in the migrations of various kinds of wild bird life (including flamingos, pelicans, spoonbills, ibises, storks, shelducks, avocets, stilts, and gulls).

By virtue of its high levels of salinity, the lake does not sustain any fish species. Nonetheless, Lake Urmia is considered a significant natural habitats of Artemia, which serve as food source for the migratory birds such as flamingos. Most of the area of the lake is considered a national park.

Source: wiki