A pink lake
is a lake that has a reddish or pink color due to the presence of
algae that produces carotenoids (organic pigments), such as Dunaliella
salina - a type of halophile green micro-algae especially found in sea
salt fields. Because of pink color, these lakes are becoming
increasingly popular among tourists and photographers from around the
world.
1. Lake Hillier, Australia
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 colour, rose pink. The colour is permanent, as it
does not alter when the water is taken in a container. The length of
the lake is about 600 m (1970 ft). 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. Middle Island and lake were discovered in 1812. [link, map]
2. Lake Retba, Senegal
Lake Retba
or Lac Rose lies north of the Cap Vert peninsula of Senegal, north east
of Dakar. It is so named for its pink waters, caused by Dunaliella
salina algae in the water.
The color is
particularly visible during the dry season. The lake is also known for
its high salt content, which, like that of the Dead Sea, allows people
to float easily.
 |
| An aerial shot of salt piled up along the shoreline of Lake Retba link |
The lake also has a
small salt collecting industry. Many salt collectors work 6–7 hours a
day in the lake, which has a salt content close to 40%.
In order to protect
their skin, they rub their skin with "Beurre de Karité" (shea butter,
produced from shea nuts obtained from the Shea nut tree), which is an
emollient used to avoid tissue damage. [link, map]
3. Salina de Torrevieja, Spain
 |
| Aerial view of the Salina de Torrevieja from the Mediterranean Sea link |
Salina de Torrevieja and
La Salina de La Mata are salt lakes that surrounds Torrevieja - a
seaside city in south-eastern Spain. The microclimate formed by La
Salina de Torrevieja and La Salina de La Mata, both the biggest
saltlakes in Europe, is declared one of the healthiest of Europe by the
WHO - World Health Organisation.
Because of the algae and
salt quantity Salina de Torrevieja lake looks pink, which gives it a
'sciencefiction' view. Just like the Dead Sea in Israel, you can float
on this lake too. Also, it is very healthy for the skin and
lungdiseases.
The salt dug from this
lake by the factories at the other end is exported to many countries.
This lake attracts a large number of bird species. [link1, link2, map]
4. Hutt Lagoon, Australia
 |
| Hutt Lagoon on the left and Indian Ocean on the right side link |
Hutt Lagoon is a salt lake located near the coast just north of the mouth of the Hutt River, in midwest Western Australia. This body of water is an elongate lake that sits in a dune swale adjacent to the coast.
The town of Gregory
is located between the ocean and the lake's southern shores. The road
between Northampton and Kalbarri, George Grey Drive, runs along its
western edge.
The lake is about 14 km
(8.7 mi) in length along its long axis which is oriented in a
northwest-southest direction, parallel with the coast. It is around 2 km
(1.2 mi) wide.
....
Hutt Lagoon is a pink
lake, a salt lake with a red or pink hue due to the presence of the
carotenoid-producing algae Dunaliella salina, a source of ß-carotene, a
food-colouring agent and source of vitamin A. The lagoon contains the world's largest microalgae production plant, a 250 ha (1 sq mi) series of artificial ponds used to farm Dunaliella salina. [link, map]
5. Dusty Rose Lake, Canada
This pink lake located in British Columbia,
Canada, is quite unusual, unknown and probably unique. The water of
this lake is not salty at all, and not contain algae, but it is still
pink. In the picture you can see the pink water that runs into the lake.
Water color comes from the unique composition of the rocks in this area
(rock flour from the glacier).
6. Pink Lake, Australia
Pink Lake is a salt lake in the Goldfields-Esperance region
of Western Australia. It lies about 3 kilometres (2 mi) west of
Esperance and is bounded to the East by the South Coast Highway.
The lake is not always
pink in colour but the distinctive colour of the water when the lake is
pink is a result of the green alga Dunaliella salina and or high
concentration of brine shrimp. The lake has been identified by BirdLife
International as an Important Bird Area (IBA). [link, map]
7. Masazirgol, Azerbaijan
Masazirgol or Masazir Lake
is a salty lake of in Qaradag raion, near Baku, Azerbaijan. The overall
area of the lake is 10 sq km (3.9 sq mi). Large volumes of chloride and
sulphate are concentrated in ion composition of the water.
 |
| Workers shoveling salt into horse drawn carts link |
A new salt making plant
was built in 2010 for production of 2 Azeri brands of salt. The
estimated amount of recoverable salt is 1,735 million tons. It is
available in liquid (water) and clay forms. [link, map]
8. Quairading Pink Lake, Australia
Quairading Pink Lake is located 11 km (7 mi) east of Quairading (Western Australia) on the Bruce Rock Road. This road passes through the lake.
The Pink Lake is
regarded locally as a natural phenomenon. At certain times of the year,
one side of the lake becomes dark pink, while the other side remains
light pink color. [map]
Bonus: Field of Pink Lakes, Australia
This unusual landscape
is photographed from an airplane in Western Australia. Actually, field
of pink lakes is somewhere between Esperance and Caiguna.
There are hundreds of
small pink lakes and each of them has different shade of pink. This is
caused by the fact that every lake has a different concentration of
algae and salt in their water.
