Dudipatsar Lake ( ur, ), also known as Dudipat Lake, is a

lake A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much large ...

encircled by snow clad peaks in

Lulusar-Dudipatsar National Park Lulusar-Dodipat National Park is located in the Kaghan Valley in Mansehra District of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. The park was created in 2003. The scenic Dudipatsar Lake and Lulusar Lake and peaks are in the park. Flora and fauna The flora ...

. The lake lies in the north end of the Kaghan Valley, in the Mansehra District, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, in northern

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

Geography

The lake's water is greenish blue hue and very cold, at an elevation of . The surrounding mountains, with snow patches in the shady dales, average around in elevation. Their natural

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

is in the

Western Himalayan alpine shrub and meadows The Western Himalayan alpine shrub and meadows is a montane grasslands and shrublands ecoregion of Nepal, India, and Tibet, which lies between the tree line and snow line in the western portion of the Himalaya Range. Setting The Western Himalayan ...

ecoregion An ecoregion (ecological region) or ecozone (ecological zone) is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than a bioregion, which in turn is smaller than a biogeographic realm. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of l ...

Lulusar Lake Lulusar (), (), or Lalusar, is a group of mountain peaks and a lake in the Kaghan Valley in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. Lulusar Lake Lulusar Lake (also spelled Lulusir) is a lake at , and is the primary headwaters of the Kunha ...

, also in the park, is the primary headwaters of the

Kunhar River The Kunhar River ( ur, ) or River Kunhar, is a long river, located primarily in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, northern Pakistan. It is in the Indus River watershed basin. Its previous name was NainSukh (Ankhon ka Araam). Some people cla ...

. Saiful Muluk National Park, with Saif ul Maluk Lake, is adjacent in the long Kaghan Valley region and together the parks protect .

Wildlife

The lake and its

wetland A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The ...

s habitats are of significant ecological importance for resident fauna and migratory

waterfowl Anseriformes is an order of birds also known as waterfowl that comprises about 180 living species of birds in three families: Anhimidae (three species of screamers), Anseranatidae (the magpie goose), and Anatidae, the largest family, which in ...

. Some of the park's fauna includes the snow leopard, black bear, marmot,

weasel Weasels are mammals of the genus ''Mustela'' of the family Mustelidae. The genus ''Mustela'' includes the least weasels, polecats, stoats, ferrets and European mink. Members of this genus are small, active predators, with long and slender bo ...

lynx A lynx is a type of wild cat. Lynx may also refer to: Astronomy * Lynx (constellation) * Lynx (Chinese astronomy) * Lynx X-ray Observatory, a NASA-funded mission concept for a next-generation X-ray space observatory Places Canada * Lynx, Ontar ...

leopard The leopard (''Panthera pardus'') is one of the five extant species in the genus '' Panthera'', a member of the cat family, Felidae. It occurs in a wide range in sub-Saharan Africa, in some parts of Western and Central Asia, Southern Russia, a ...

Himalayan snowcock The Himalayan snowcock (''Tetraogallus himalayensis'') is a snowcock in the pheasant family Phasianidae found across the Himalayan ranges and parts of the adjoining Pamir range of Asia. It is found on alpine pastures and on steep rocky cliffs wh ...

, and snow partridge.

Access

The

2005 Kashmir earthquake The 2005 Kashmir earthquake occurred at on 8 October in Pakistani-administered Azad Kashmir. It was centred near the city of Muzaffarabad, and also affected nearby Balakot in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and some areas of Indian-administered Jammu and ...

in North

made access more difficult. However, since 2006 the Pakistan government has taken steps to restore tourism in the Kaghan Valley, including rebuilding and new tourism facilities and infrastructure.www.president-of-pakistan-gov: "Tourism Revival plans"

References

External links

{{Waters of Pakistan Lakes of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Mansehra District

Geography

Wildlife

Access

See also

References

External links