SKADAR LAKE MONTENEGRO 4K

Lake Skadar is the largest lake in the Balkan Peninsula with a surface area that seasonally fluctuates between 370 km2 (140 sq mi) and 530 km2 (200 sq mi). Lake Skadar itself is located on the western Balkan The lake is located in the border area between Albania and Montenegro, the Montenegrin share of the area of the lake is slightly larger than the Albanian. The lake's water level also varies seasonally from 4.7 to 9.8 m above sea level. The lake extends in the NW-SE direction, and it is approximately 44 km long. The Bojana River connects the lake with the Adriatic Sea. The lake is a cryptodepression, filled by the river Morača and drained into the Adriatic by the 41 km (25 mi) long Bojana, which forms the international border on the lower half of its length. The largest inflow is from the Morača, which provides about 62% of the lake's water. Total drainage area is 5490 km2. The Lake Skadar system is a well-known hotspot of freshwater biodiversity and harbors a highly diverse mollusk fauna. Lake Skadar 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. It is abundant in fish, especially in carp, bleak and eel. Of the 34 native fish species, 7 are endemic to Lake Skadar. At the scale of Lake Skadar, about 31% of freshwater snails (12 out of 39 species sampled in the lake) are endemic. At the scale of the Lake Skadar basin, 38% (19 species) of the total freshwater gastropod fauna appear to be endemic.There were reliably recorded 50 species of freshwater snails from the Lake Skadar basin.The index of freshwater gastropod endemism is 0.478.With this relatively high value, Lake Skadar exceeds such famous lakes as Lake Malawi and Lake Titicaca. The Lake Skadar is inhabited by five species of Bithynia and it is a hot spot of Bithynia evolution. There are 17 amphipod species for the Lake Skadar watershed, 10 of them being endemic (mainly from the subterranean habitat). The 2011 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species includes 21 endemic species from the Lake Skadar basin.