Lake Alexander is a man-made
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 ...
named in honour of
Alec Fong Lim
Alexander Fong Lim AM (鄺鴻銓, 18 February 1931 – 3 September 1990) was the eleventh Lord Mayor of the City of Darwin, the capital city of the Northern Territory of Australia. He served as Lord Mayor from 1 June 1984 to 9 August 199 ...
who was Lord Mayor of Darwin from
1984 to 1990. The lake is located in
Fannie Bay Darwin, Northern Territory
Darwin ( ; Larrakia: ) is the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. With an estimated population of 147,255 as of 2019, the city contains the majority of the residents of the sparsely populated Northern Territory.
It is the smalle ...
,
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
and was officially opened on the 21 July 1991 for recreational use by the people of Darwin. The water in the lake is refreshed with pumps bringing water from the adjoining harbour through filters intended to prevent marine organisms from entering. This system has succeeded in keeping large predators such as
saltwater crocodile
The saltwater crocodile (''Crocodylus porosus'') is a crocodilian native to saltwater habitats and brackish wetlands from India's east coast across Southeast Asia and the Sundaic region to northern Australia and Micronesia. It has been listed ...
s and
bull shark
The bull shark (''Carcharhinus leucas''), also known as the Zambezi shark (informally zambi) in Africa and Lake Nicaragua shark in Nicaragua, is a species of requiem shark commonly found worldwide in warm, shallow waters along coasts and in ri ...
s, and the deadly
box jellyfish
Box jellyfish (class Cubozoa) are cnidarian invertebrates distinguished by their box-like (i.e. cube-shaped) body. Some species of box jellyfish produce potent venom delivered by contact with their tentacles. Stings from some species, including '' ...
. However the lake has been closed to swimming twice, once due to a large
Orange-spotted grouper
The orange-spotted grouper (''Epinephelus coioides''), also known as the brown-spotted rockcod, estuary cod, estuary rockcod, goldspotted rockcod, greasy cod, North-west groper, orange spotted cod or blue-and-yellow grouper, is a species of marin ...
and once due to an outbreak of a stinging species of
Cassiopea
''Cassiopea'' (upside-down jellyfish) is a genus of true jellyfish and the only members of the family Cassiopeidae. They are found in warmer coastal regions around the world, including shallow mangrove swamps, mudflats, canals, and turtle gra ...
jelly fish.
Photographs
image:Welcome Lake Alexander.jpg, Welcome to Lake Alexander
image:Alec_Fong-Lim_plaque.jpg, Brass plaque
Image:Darwin_Lake_Alexander.jpg, Sunset
References
Alexander
Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history.
Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...
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