Lake Stymphalia (
Greek
Greek may refer to:
Greece
Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe:
*Greeks, an ethnic group.
*Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family.
**Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
: Λίμνη Στυμφαλία - ''Límnē Stymphalía'') is located in the north-eastern part of the
Peloponnese
The Peloponnese (), Peloponnesus (; el, Πελοπόννησος, Pelopónnēsos,(), or Morea is a peninsula and geographic regions of Greece, geographic region in southern Greece. It is connected to the central part of the country by the Isthmu ...
, in
Corinthia
Corinthia ( el, Κορινθία ''Korinthía'') is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of Peloponnese. It is situated around the city of Corinth, in the north-eastern part of the Peloponnese peninsula.
Geography
Cori ...
, southern
Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...
.
It is a closed
karst
Karst is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble rocks such as limestone, dolomite, and gypsum. It is characterized by underground drainage systems with sinkholes and caves. It has also been documented for more weathering-resistant ro ...
basin with a wetland area and an agrarian area. The lake is an important stopover for migratory birds. The size of the lake varies, depending on the season.
Usually this area around the lake is fairly dry underfoot.
In certain weather conditions thousands of small green frogs hide in the damp grass from the aquatic snakes. These
frog
A frog is any member of a diverse and largely Carnivore, carnivorous group of short-bodied, tailless amphibians composing the order (biology), order Anura (ανοὐρά, literally ''without tail'' in Ancient Greek). The oldest fossil "proto-f ...
s are invisible in the grass until you almost step on them, at which they jump out of the way, usually landing on another frog which also jumps. The effect is of ripples of frogs travelling outwards with every step. The area is rich in birds, amphibians and plant life.
Other wildlife, such as weasels, can also be seen.
The area is also mentioned in
Greek Mythology
A major branch of classical mythology, Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the Ancient Greece, ancient Greeks, and a genre of Ancient Greek folklore. These stories concern the Cosmogony, origin and Cosmology#Metaphysical co ...
, due to the
Stymphalian birds, which infested the Arcadian woods near the lake.
Heracles
Heracles ( ; grc-gre, Ἡρακλῆς, , glory/fame of Hera), born Alcaeus (, ''Alkaios'') or Alcides (, ''Alkeidēs''), was a divine hero in Greek mythology, the son of Zeus and Alcmene, and the foster son of Amphitryon.By his adoptive ...
' sixth labour was to exterminate them.
File:Stymfalia-north 2006.jpg, Village Stymfalia, Mount Kyllini
Mount Kyllini or Mount Cyllene (; grc, Κυλλήνη , ; sometimes , ), is a mountain on the Peloponnese in Greece famous for its association with the god Hermes. It rises to above sea level, making it the second highest point on the peninsul ...
, fields wet. Ditch, leading to an irrigation tunnel
File:Stymfalia-Landsat7 WW.jpg, Plain is fertile, lake with high water, Snow on Mount Kyllini (2.374 m), NASA WorldWind
NASA WorldWind is an open-source (released under the NOSA license and the Apache 2.0 license) virtual globe. According to the website (https://worldwind.arc.nasa.gov/), "WorldWind is an open source virtual globe API. WorldWind allows ...
(8 km)
File:Τα δεντρα μεσα στη λιμνη Στυμφαλιας.jpg, Trees at the lake
File:Stymfalia west 2006.jpg, Oligyrtos Mountain, 100% forest, high water, fields wet
File:Λίμνη Στυμφαλίας.jpg, Panorama of closed karst basin
File:Stymfalia south 2006.jpg, reed growing (green), densly forested
See also
*
Stymphalus (Arcadia) Stymphalus or Stymphalos ( gr, Στύμφαλος), or Stymphelus or Stymphelos (Στύμφηλος), or Stymphelum or Stymphelon (Στύμφηλον), or Stymphalum, or Stymphala, was a town in the northeast of ancient Arcadia.
Location
The territ ...
, ancient town
*
Stymfalia
Stymfalia ( el, Στυμφαλία; grc, Στύμφαλος ''Stymphalos'') is a village and a former municipality in Corinthia, Peloponnese (region), Peloponnese, Greece, previously known by the name Matsiza (small cat in Albanian) due to its A ...
, modern town
References
External links
{{Commons category, Lake Stymphalia
*http://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=593668
*https://web.archive.org/web/20070704131456/http://www.cnrs.ubc.ca/index.php?id=3526
*https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=khGH-IVDdew
Stymphalus
In Greek mythology, Stymphalus or Stymphalos (Ancient Greek: Στύμφαλος or Στύμφαλον) may refer to the following personages:
* Stymphalus, an Arcadian prince as one of the 50 sons of the impious King Lycaon either by the naiad ...
Stymphalus
In Greek mythology, Stymphalus or Stymphalos (Ancient Greek: Στύμφαλος or Στύμφαλον) may refer to the following personages:
* Stymphalus, an Arcadian prince as one of the 50 sons of the impious King Lycaon either by the naiad ...
Landforms of Peloponnese (region)