Rāzna ( lv, Rāznas ezers, ''Rēznas ezers'') is the second largest water surface and the first in terms of water volume lake in

Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...

. It is located in the eastern part of the country on the territory of

Rēzekne Municipality Rēzekne Municipality ( lv, Rēzeknes novads) is a municipality in Latgale, Latvia. The municipality was formed in 2009 by merging Audriņi parish, Bērzgale parish, Čornaja parish, Dricāni parish, Feimaņi parish, Gaigalava parish, Griškā ...

, the water area of the lake is divided between Kaunatas, Mākoņkalna and Čornajas parishes. It is located in the central part of the Latgale Upland at an altitude of above sea level. The total area of the lake is , the water surface is . The maximum depth reaches . There are 10 islands on the lake with a total area of , the largest of them is Apshu (9 hectares). In the late 80s - early 90s, the Committee for Environmental Protection drew attention to the deterioration of the ecological state of the lake. In 1999, funds were allocated for a project to create a nature park based on the lake. In 2001, local governments signed a protocol proposing the creation of the Rāzna National Park. In 2004, the official establishment of the Razna Natural Park takes place, which on January 1, 2007 will be transformed into the Rāzna National Park. The lake is home to

northern pike The northern pike (''Esox lucius'') is a species of carnivorous fish of the genus '' Esox'' (the pikes). They are typical of brackish and fresh waters of the Northern Hemisphere (''i.e.'' holarctic in distribution). They are known simply as a ...

, stickleback,

stone loach The stone loach (''Barbatula barbatula'') is a European species of fresh water ray-finned fish in the family Nemacheilidae. It is one of nineteen species in the genus ''Barbatula''. Stone loaches live amongst the gravel and stones of fast flowin ...

european eel The European eel (''Anguilla anguilla'') is a species of eel, a snake-like, catadromous fish. They are normally around and rarely reach more than , but can reach a length of up to in exceptional cases. Eels have been important sources of fo ...

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 ...

sander A sander is a power tool used to smooth surfaces by abrasion with sandpaper. Sanders have a means to attach the sandpaper and a mechanism to move it rapidly contained within a housing with means to hand-hold it or fix it to a workbench. Woodwo ...

, perch,

roach Roach may refer to: Animals * Cockroach, various insect species of the order Blattodea * Common roach (''Rutilus rutilus''), a fresh and brackish water fish of the family Cyprinidae ** ''Rutilus'' or roaches, a genus of fishes * California roach ...

, peled, carp, crucian carp, common bleak,

common bream The common bream, freshwater bream, bream, bronze bream, carp bream or sweaty bream (''Abramis brama''), is a European species of freshwater fish in the family Cyprinidae. It is now considered to be the only species in the genus ''Abramis''. ...

common rudd The common rudd (''Scardinius erythrophthalmus'') is a bentho-pelagic freshwater fish, widely spread in Europe and middle Asia, around the basins of the North, Baltic, Black, Caspian and Aral seas. Identification Morphologically, this specie ...

, vendace, ide, ruff,

blicca bjoerkna ''Blicca bjoerkna'', alternatively called the white bream or the silver bream, is a European species of freshwater fish in the family Cyprinidae. Distribution ''Blicca bjoerkna'' is distributed across most of Europe and in adjacent Western Asi ...

and some other fish species. Two kilometers from the south-western shore of the lake there is Makonkalns hill, from which a view of the lake can be seen.

References

{{Authority control Rāzna