Al-Asfar Lake (Arabic: بحيرة الأصفر), also known as Asfar, Alasfar and Yellow Lake. Al-Asfar is located to the East of Umran city, in Al-Hasa, Eastern

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...

. The lake is surrounded by sand dunes and somewhat difficult to reach. Al-Asfar lake is one of the important wetland shallow lake in the region. The lake is a historic landmark of Al-Hasa, and was mentioned by some historians of the

Abbasid The Abbasid Caliphate ( or ; ar, الْخِلَافَةُ الْعَبَّاسِيَّة, ') was the third caliphate to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abdul-Muttalib ...

and Islamic Golden Era such as Al-Hamawi,

Al-Qalqashandi Shihāb al-Dīn Abū 'l-Abbās Aḥmad ibn ‘Alī ibn Aḥmad ‘Abd Allāh al-Fazārī al-Shāfiʿī better known by the epithet al-Qalqashandī ( ar, شهاب الدين أحمد بن علي بن أحمد القلقشندي; 1355 or 1356 &ndash ...

and

Al-Zamakhshari Abu al-Qasim Mahmud ibn Umar al-Zamakhshari (; 1074 –1143) was a medieval Muslim scholar of Iranian peoples, Iranian descent. He travelled to Mecca, Makkah and settled there for five years and has been known since then as Jar Allah ‘God's Ne ...

. In the present time, The primary source of lake water is agricultural drainage water, which made some to refer to it as man-made. in 2019, Yellow Lake was declared national

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

History

The lake has been mentioned by several historians such as Al-Hamawi and

. The lake is also mentioned by

in his book ''"Kitab al-Amkinah wa al-Jibal wa al-Miyah'' ''"'' , where he describes it as peaceful lake at gates of Al-Hasa.

suggests that the naming of the historical region of

Bahrayn Bahrain ( ; ; ar, البحرين, al-Bahrayn, locally ), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, ' is an island country in Western Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and an ad ...

(which includes present time Eastern Arabia and

Bahrain Bahrain ( ; ; ar, البحرين, al-Bahrayn, locally ), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, ' is an island country in Western Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and an ...

and translates to English as the "two Seas") comes from its location between The Green Sea and a peaceful lake at Alhasa.

Wildlife

Different parts of the lake reflect different type of shores that include Wet, moist, semi-dry and dry zones. The different zones may have different plant species. There are at least 39 plant species belonging to 20 families that can be identified around the lake. Fluctuating water level create very diverse conditions, which enhances the vegetation and plant species and types. Fluctuating water levels allow some vegetation types to regenerate from buried seeds. Al-Asfar Lake attract migratory birds twice a year. Birds migrate from cooler places such as Russia, Canada, India and Iran to warmer climate areas including Al-Asfar Lake. The range of birds varies from small birds such as Sparrows to large birds such as

geese A goose ( : geese) is a bird of any of several waterfowl species in the family Anatidae. This group comprises the genera '' Anser'' (the grey geese and white geese) and ''Branta'' (the black geese). Some other birds, mostly related to the she ...

and

duck Duck is the common name for numerous species of waterfowl in the family Anatidae. Ducks are generally smaller and shorter-necked than swans and geese, which are members of the same family. Divided among several subfamilies, they are a form ...

Environmental concerns

The lake water is contaminated with heavy metals, which mainly comes from agricultural water. The heavy metal level is generally higher than the international permissible limits and varies seasonally.

UNESCO site

In 2018,

Al-Ahsa Oasis ''Al-Aḥsāʾ'' ( ar, الْأَحْسَاء, ''al-ʾAhsā''), also known as al-Ḥasāʾ () or Hajar (), is a traditional oasis historical region in eastern Saudi Arabia whose name is used by the Al-Ahsa Governorate, which makes up much of th ...

became the fifth Saudi site to be registered on the

UNESCO world heritage A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

. Al-Asfar lake is one of 12 sites that were designated as world heritage site within Al-Hasa.

References

{{Reflist World Heritage Sites in Asia Nature reserves in Saudi Arabia Lakes of Saudi Arabia