Lonar Lake
- Location: Buldhana District, Maharashtra
- Shape: Oval
- Taste: Saline
- Formation: After a Meteorite hit the Earth Some 50000 years ago
- In News: Because it turned pink due to Haloarchaea microbes
Earlier Scientist thought that Red-Pigmented Dunaliella algae is the reason. Haloarchaea or Halophilic archaea is a bacteria which produces pink pigment and is found in water saturated with salt. Absence of rain, less human interference and high temperature resulted in the evaporation of water which increased its salinity and pH.
Now Colour of the Lake is returning to original:- it is due to Rainy season, the salinity and alkalinity levels have come down and Green Algae have started growing in water.
But Why Flamingo Bird Landed there?
- The plumage of the bird is pink or reddish in colour because of ingestion of carotenoids-rich food.
- This bacteria, which produces a pink pigment, is ingested by these birds and they get carotenoid-rich food, because of that their plumage is pink in colour.
- That’s why these flamingos might have noticed the red colour at the lake and landed there.
Meteorite Crater in India:-
–Lonar Lake:Buldhana District, Maharashtra
–Ramgarh Crater: Baran District, Rajasthan
–Dhala Crater: Shivpuri District, Madhya pradesh
But what are algal bloom?
- The scientist earlier thought that may be the reason for pink colour.
- Algal Bloom:rapid increase in the population of algae in an aquatic system (both in freshwater as well as marine) .
- The phenomenon can be easily recognised by the discolouration on the surface of the water.
- cause of algal blooms :- sudden increase of nutrients in the aquatic ecosystem through agricultural runoffs, sewage runoffs and other anthropogenic causes.
- However, algal blooms can also be caused naturally. Ocean currents drive up nutrients to the surface from the depths, and the abundance of nutrients, combined with sunlight on the ocean surface provides a very favourable environment for the algae to grow. These conditions will lead to the rapid growth of algae.
Also refer :
- Download the pdf of Important MCQs From the History Of Ancient India
- List Of Important Inscriptions In India
