In the warmest months, the temperature of the water in the pond can exceed 50-60 ° C. It reaches no more than 57 km in length and about 21 km in width. The lake is located near the border of Tanzania with Kenya, and covers an area of slightly less than 1040 sq.m. And this can lead to the extinction of unique microorganisms living in the pond. Due to the global environmental changes that are taking place in the world, in the near future there is a great threat that the salt balance may be disturbed in the unique composition of the Natron. Natron is the most saline and alkaline reservoir not only in East Africa, but also in the world, and the characteristic muddy red color is just a dense crust of salt that covers the lake. The masses became aware of the existence of an unusual reservoir relatively recently: a few years ago photos of Lake Natron in Tanzania were published in a British magazine. It is famous for the fact that the water in the lake has a bright red color, and the birds that once flew over this place turn into salty stones. “Reanimated, alive again in death.Lake Natron is one of Tanzania’s most famous natural attractions. “I took these creatures as I found them on the shoreline, and then placed them in ‘living’ positions, bringing them back to ‘life’, as it were,” Brandt said. It’s that same salt that mummifies the creatures and preserves them into the calcified, statue-like figures that Brandt stumbled upon on the edge of the lake. “So things that get caught in the lake do die because they just get covered in salt very quickly.” “If you imagine a bird getting water on its feathers it would very quickly be too heavy to fly,” said Harper. It is very, very hot, so water evaporates very quickly, leaving only the crust of salt on the animal. It’s so caustic that only one type of fish – Tilapia grahami – and certain bacteria can actually live in it.īut it’s the temperature of the air around the lake that seals the fate of these animals. He said it’s a lethal equation: the regional environment plus the composition and characteristics of the lake equals certain death for winged animals that accidently come in contact with it.įirst, the lake is very large – 402 square miles – and birds, bats and other flying critters can’t always make it across.īut when they try to land, or even worse, fall in, they become coated with water that has an extremely high concentration of sodium carbonate, a salt-like mineral. David Harper is a professor at the University of Leicester who has studied wildlife at Lake Natron. In his book, “Across the Ravaged Land,” Brandt shows the world what happens to some wildlife when it’s submerged Lake Natron, and it’s not pretty.ĭr. The lake is 402 square miles.Ī lake in Tanzania has come into the spotlight recently thanks to a series of eerie photographs released by photographer Nick Brandt. Correction : A previous version of this story incorrectly stated that Lake Natron was 402 miles wide.
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