Mrd.Kundangar
Shafiqa Peer
Whereas valley of Kashmir is beset with myriads of freshwater lakes, Springs, rivers and streams the high altitude lakes are God given liquid jewels in the lap of lofty mountain ranges. These high altitude lakes vary in morphometery, size and altitude.
According to National wetland inventory assessment report Jammu and Kashmir has the highest share of lakes. Number- wise, around 44.7% of lakes (2104 number) are found in this state with 87.2% share of total area.
The Lakes are formed due to number of natural processes like tectonic uplift of a mountain range resulting in creation of bowl-shaped depressions that accumulate water and form lakes. The advance and retreat of glaciers can scrape depressions in the surface where water accumulates, example of such lakes are Kousarnag, Tarsar, Marsar, etc
Lakes can also form by means of landslides or by glacial blockages.such as Gangabal, Kishansar,Vishansar and Nagputan Lakes etc
Himalayan Lakes) re remote and extremely sensitive ecosystems inhabited by scarce but well adapted species (Pastorino et al., 2020a). These lake ecosystems are characterized by small growing seasons, lower temperatures, longer ice periods, extended snow cover, higher elevations, and strong ultra-violet radiations. Small variations in these characteristics results in strong reactions of biodiversity, community structure (Moser et al., 2019; Kuefner et al., 2021).
Lakes are helpful in controlling weather and local climate. Lakes are helpful for creating irrigation facilities and recreation. In some places, lakes are good sources for water supply for drinking. Every lake, is unique in terms of its size, morphometry, water availability, water chemistry, physics, hydrology and biology. There are several type, kinds and categories of lakes in the world.
The trophic state of the lakes is classified into three types viz: Oligotrophic, Mesotrophic, and Eutrophic Lakes. When the lake has higher trophic indices may be considered as hyper- oligotrophic or hypereutrophic.
Oligotrophic lake:
An oligotrophic lake is one which has a relatively low productivity due to the low nutrient content in the lake. The waters of these lakes are usually quite clear due to the limited growth of algae in the lake. The waters of such lakes are of high-drinking quality. Such lakes support aquatic species who require well-oxygenated, cold waters such as trout fishes. Oligotrophic lakes are usually found in the cold regions of the world where mixing of nutrients is rare and slow due to the low temperatures of the lake waters.
Mesotrophic lake
Lakes with an intermediate level of productivity are called mesotrophic lakes. These lakes have medium-level nutrients and are usually clear water with submerged aquatic plants.
Eutrophic lake
Eutrophic Lakes have high levels of biological productivity and this lake support an abundance of plants due to the rich nutrient constitution, especially nitrogen and phosphorus. Initially, eutrophic lakes accelerate multiplication and growth of Lake Fauna due to the high levels of oxygen provided by a large number of plants growing in the lake. However, when things cross limits, plants or algal blooms overcrowd the lake and the lake fauna suffers due to the high levels of respiration by the living vegetative matter. Eutrophication might occur naturally or due to human impact on the environment.
Hypereutrophic lake
These lakes suffer from problems arising due to excessive plant and algal growth due to a high supply of growth nutrients. These lakes have little transparency due to the dense overgrowth of algae or aquatic flora. . The overgrowth of algae often suffocates the fauna below the water depths, and this might create dead zones beneath the water surface.
Both natural and human-made factors might influence the trophic state of a water body. If the lake is located in a region that has a high level of nutrients, the lake will naturally be in the eutrophic state. Sewage entering the lake intentionally or accidentally, agricultural runoffs from crop-fields or fertilizers leached into the waters are the different ways in which nutrients are added to a water body due to human activities.
The present article pertains to some unexplored high altitude lakes of Kashmir in terms of their ecological characters, water chemistry and water quality which include Sheshnag, Girisar, Chunsar, Chunharnag,Chirsar , , Sonasar, Sorass sar,and Sheera Sar.
The water samples of these water samples were made available by the team MTTH(Mountain Trails Trekking and High king Club)through their Sunday trips .
Sheshnag Lake is an oligotrophic alpine lake located in Anantnag district at an elevation of 3590 meters. It is situated on the track leading to the Amarnath cave, about 23 km from Pahalgam. It has a maximum length of 1.1 km and maximum width of 0.7 Sheshnag Lake is home to many types of fish species among which brown trout figures at the top.It freezes during winter, and is inaccessible during this season due to heavy snowfall. The lake is surrounded by green lush meadows and mountains covered by snow. It is mostly fed by melting of snow and streams coming down from mountaintops. It drains out through a stream that joins Lidder River at Pahalgam.
The lake waters are alkaline and alkalinity is due to carbonates. The lake waters show higher values of iron,Nitrates,Total Phosphorus,Dissolved Solids and COD ( Chemical Oxygen demand).
GIRSAR lake:
GIRSAR lake is situated at an elevation of 3,742 m.s.l. with a surface area of about 0.000306554827 sq.km.The lake falls just nearby between two hamlets the Sinthon and Goren in District Islamabad..The lake waters are buffer with an average pH of 7.8 and Total alkalinity value of 45 mg per litre.The lake waters show higher values of Nitrate- Nitrogen,Total Phosphates, Calcium and Sulphates.
….to be continued
The authors can be reached at mrdkundangar@me.com
