Korgalzhyn ( kk, Қорғалжын; russian: Кургальджин) 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 ...
in
Korgalzhyn District
Korgalzhyn District ( kk, Қорғалжын ауданы, ) is a district of Aqmola Region in northern Kazakhstan. The administrative center of the district is the selo of Korgalzhyn
Korgalzhyn ( kz, Қорғалжын, ''Qorğaljyn'') is a vill ...
,
Akmola Region
Akmola Region ( kz, Ақмола облысы, translit=Aqmola oblysy; russian: Акмолинская область, Akmolinskaya oblast) is a centrally located region of Kazakhstan. Its capital is Kokshetau. The national capital, Astana, is en ...
,
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...
.
Google Earth
Google Earth is a computer program that renders a 3D computer graphics, 3D representation of Earth based primarily on satellite imagery. The program maps the Earth by superimposition, superimposing satellite images, aerial photography, and geog ...
Korgalzhyn is the main body of water of the Korgalzhyn group of lakes, which includes Birtaban, Sholakshalkar, Shalkar, Zhanybekshalkar, Uialyshalkar and Zhandyshalkar.Hydrology and Limnology of Central Asia /ref>
Korgalzhyn is one of the main lakes of the Tengiz-Korgalzhyn Depression. The lake is part of the
Korgalzhyn Nature Reserve
Korgalzhyn State Nature Reserve ( kk, Қорғалжын мемлекеттік табиғи қорығы, ''Qorğaljyn memlekettık tabiği qoryğy'') is a protected area in Aqmola and Karaganda regions of Kazakhstan, located west of the city of ...
, a
protected area
Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...
.Korgalzhyn Biosphere Reserve, Kazakhstan /ref> It is also an Important Bird Area and
Ramsar site
A Ramsar site is a wetland site designated to be of international importance under the Ramsar Convention,8 ha (O)
*** Permanent 8 ha (P)
*** Seasonal Intermittent < 8 ha(Ts)
**
wetlands
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 ...
and mostly muddy waterways which are the breeding site of 318 bird species, including 22
endangered
An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and inva ...
Korgalzhyn is a lake that lies at the bottom of the large Tengiz-Korgalzhyn Depression, close to the southeast of larger
Lake Tengiz
Tengiz Lake ( kk, Теңіз көлі, ''Teñız kölı''; russian: Тенгиз) is a saline lake in north-central part of Kazakhstan.
On 16 October 1976, the Soviet spacecraft Soyuz 23 unintentionally splashed down into the northern part of ...
. Lake Sholakshalkar lies to the east. The lake is shallow, with a maximum depth of . Most of it is covered by reeds, except for a few lobes in the northwest and northeast, Kokai, Sultankeldy and Isey, where the surface is relatively free of vegetation. The northern and eastern shorelines are steep and rocky, reaching heights between and , while the western and southern shores are gently sloping and overgrown with aquatic vegetation. The lake bottom is flat and clayey, covered with dark grey
silt
Silt is granular material of a size between sand and clay and composed mostly of broken grains of quartz. Silt may occur as a soil (often mixed with sand or clay) or as sediment mixed in suspension with water. Silt usually has a floury feel when ...
.''ATAMEKEN: Geographical Encyclopedia.'' / General ed. B. O. Jacob. -
Almaty
Almaty (; kk, Алматы; ), formerly known as Alma-Ata ( kk, Алма-Ата), is the List of most populous cities in Kazakhstan, largest city in Kazakhstan, with a population of about 2 million. It was the capital of Kazakhstan from 1929 to ...
: "Kazakh Encyclopedia", 2011. - 648 pages. ISBN 9965-893-70-5
The Nura river flows into the eastern lakeshore from the northeast. During spring floods the overflow discharges into lake Tengiz from the northwestern end. River
Kulanotpes
The Kulanotpes ( kk, Құланөтпес; russian: Куланотпес) is a river in the Nura District, Karaganda Region, Kazakhstan. It has a length of and a drainage basin of .Google Earth
It is the second most important river flowing into ...
flows along the western edge of Korgalzhyn. The water of the lake is fresh near the mouth of the Nura, becoming increasingly
brackish
Brackish water, sometimes termed brack water, is water occurring in a natural environment that has more salinity than freshwater, but not as much as seawater. It may result from mixing seawater (salt water) and fresh water together, as in estuari ...
towards the northern sector.Кургальджин ''
Great Soviet Encyclopedia
The ''Great Soviet Encyclopedia'' (GSE; ) is one of the largest Russian-language encyclopedias, published in the Soviet Union from 1926 to 1990. After 2002, the encyclopedia's data was partially included into the later ''Bolshaya rossiyskaya e ...
'' in 30 vols. — Ch. ed.
A.M. Prokhorov
Alexander Mikhailovich Prokhorov (born Alexander Michael Prochoroff, russian: Алекса́ндр Миха́йлович Про́хоров; 11 July 1916 – 8 January 2002) was an Australian-born Soviet-Russian physicist known ...
. - 3rd ed. - M. Soviet Encyclopedia, 1969-1978. (in Russian)
Flora and fauna
There are large
reed beds
A reedbed or reed bed is a natural habitat found in floodplains, waterlogged depressions and
estuaries. Reedbeds are part of a succession from young reeds colonising open water or wet ground through a gradation of increasingly dry ground. As ...
scattered on mud islands almost completely covering the southern part with a mesh of open channels and ponds in between. Owing to these mud islands Korgalzhyn is an important wetland site for migratory water birds, such as different species of gulls, terns, ducks and grebes, including the northernmost colony of
greater flamingo
The greater flamingo (''Phoenicopterus roseus'') is the most widespread and largest species of the flamingo family. It is found in Africa, the Indian subcontinent, the Middle East, and in southern Europe.
Taxonomy
The greater flamingo was desc ...
. The reed thickets also provide a habitat for the wild boar.
Unlike barren neighboring lake Tengiz, Korgalzhyn is abundant in fish fauna. The main species in the lake are
crucian carp
The crucian carp (''Carassius carassius'') is a medium-sized member of the common carp family Cyprinidae. It occurs widely in northern European regions. Its name derives from the Low German ''karusse'' or ''karutze'', possibly from Medieval Lat ...
,
mirror carp
Mirror carp, regionally known as Israeli carp, are a type of domesticated fish commonly found in Europe but widely introduced or cultivated elsewhere. They are a variety of the common carp (''Cyprinus carpio'') developed through selective breedin ...
,
tench
The tench or doctor fish (''Tinca tinca'') is a fresh- and brackish-water fish of the order Cypriniformes found throughout Eurasia from Western Europe including the British Isles east into Asia as far as the Ob and Yenisei Rivers. It is also ...
pike
Pike, Pikes or The Pike may refer to:
Fish
* Blue pike or blue walleye, an extinct color morph of the yellow walleye ''Sander vitreus''
* Ctenoluciidae, the "pike characins", some species of which are commonly known as pikes
* ''Esox'', genus of ...
and
perch
Perch is a common name for fish of the genus ''Perca'', freshwater gamefish belonging to the family Percidae. The perch, of which three species occur in different geographical areas, lend their name to a large order of vertebrates: the Percif ...
.
See also
*
List of lakes of Kazakhstan
Excluding the northernmost districts, Kazakhstan consists of endorheic basins, where rivers flow into one of the numerous lakes. The most important drainage system is known as Yedisu, meaning "seven rivers" in Turkic languages. Below is the list ...
*
Saryarka – Steppe and Lakes of Northern Kazakhstan
Saryarka – Steppe and Lakes of Northern Kazakhstan is a part of the Kazakh Uplands (known in Kazakh as ''saryarka'', or "yellow range") which has been designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. It was inscribed on July 7, 2008.
(''see'' List of ...