Lake St. Lucia Explained
Lake St Lucia (Lake Saint Lucia) is an estuarine lake system in northern KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It is the largest estuarine lake in Southern Africa, covering an area of approximately, and falls within the iSimangaliso Wetland Park (a World Heritage Site).
The lake was named Santa Lucia by Manuel Perestrello on 13 December 1575, the day of the feast of Saint Lucy.[1] It was later renamed to St. Lucia.
Flora and fauna
More than 2,180 species of flowering plants have been documented in the St Lucia lake system.[2]
St Lucia Lake harbours rich fauna, including crocodiles, hippopotami, monitor lizards, over 400 bird species, invertebrates, and the occasional bull shark.[3] [4]
Notes and References
- Santa Lucia: http://www.santalucia.co.za/history.php, retrieved 8 August 2015
- Book: Thieme. Michele. Abell. Robin. Burgess. Neil. Lehner. Bernhard. Dinerstein. Eric. Olsen. David. Freshwater Ecoregions of Africa and Madagascar: A Conservation Assessment. 2005. Island Press. 331.
- Nel, H.A., Perissinotto, R. & Taylor, R.H. 2012. Diversity of bivalve molluscs in the St Lucia Estuary, with an annotated and illustrated checklist. African Invertebrates 53 (2): 503-525.Web site: Bivalvia from St Lucia Estuary . 2012-11-14 . dead . https://archive.today/20121224185751/http://www.africaninvertebrates.org.za/Nel_etal_2012_53_2_569.aspx . 2012-12-24 .
- Perissinotto, R., Taylor, R.H., Carrasco, N.K. & Fox, C. 2013. Observations on the bloom-forming jellyfish Crambionella stuhlmanni (Chun, 1896) in the St Lucia Estuary, South Africa. African Invertebrates 54 (1): 161–170.Web site: Observations on the bloom-forming jellyfish Crambionella stuhlmanni (Chun, 1896) in the St Lucia Estuary, South Africa | Perissinotto | African Invertebrates . 2013-07-25 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20130725193615/http://africaninvertebrates.org/ojs/index.php/AI/article/view/262 . 2013-07-25 .
