Lake Tota ( es, Lago de Tota) is the largest
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
Colombia
Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...
, located in the east of
Boyacá department
Boyacá () is one of the thirty-two departments of Colombia, and the remnant of Boyacá State, one of the original nine states of the "United States of Colombia".
Boyacá is centrally located within Colombia, almost entirely within the moun ...
, inside the
Sugamuxi Province, it is the source of the
Upia River which flows into the
Orinoco River
The Orinoco () is one of the longest rivers in South America at . Its drainage basin, sometimes known as the Orinoquia, covers , with 76.3 percent of it in Venezuela and the remainder in Colombia. It is the fourth largest river in the wor ...
basin.
The major town on the lake is
Aquitania
Gallia Aquitania ( , ), also known as Aquitaine or Aquitaine Gaul, was a province of the Roman Empire. It lies in present-day southwest France, where it gives its name to the modern region of Aquitaine. It was bordered by the provinces of Gallia ...
, located on its eastern side. Other nearby villages include
Tota,
Iza and
Cuítiva.
Lake Tota was an important religious center for the
Muisca
The Muisca (also called Chibcha) are an indigenous people and culture of the Altiplano Cundiboyacense, Colombia, that formed the Muisca Confederation before the Spanish conquest. The people spoke Muysccubun, a language of the Chibchan langu ...
culture. The name ''Tota'' comes from the
Chibcha language
Chibcha, Mosca, Muisca, Muysca (*/ˈmɨska/), or Muysca de Bogotá, was a language spoken by the Muisca people of the Muisca Confederation, one of the many Indigenous peoples in Colombia, indigenous List of pre-Columbian cultures, cultures of ...
of the
Muisca
The Muisca (also called Chibcha) are an indigenous people and culture of the Altiplano Cundiboyacense, Colombia, that formed the Muisca Confederation before the Spanish conquest. The people spoke Muysccubun, a language of the Chibchan langu ...
and according to linguist Mariana Escribano its main name refers to "Astronomic Observatory", relating to its
sacred uses for that culture. There are legends which relate to the way the lake was formed by the hands of ancient ancestors.
The area around Lake Tota is one of the major
onion
An onion (''Allium cepa'' L., from Latin ''cepa'' meaning "onion"), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus ''Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the onion ...
producing regions of Colombia. The western shore of the lake is a popular tourist destination for Colombians.
The average water temperature of 13 °C allowed for the introduction of
rainbow trout
The rainbow trout (''Oncorhynchus mykiss'') is a species of trout native to cold-water tributaries of the Pacific Ocean in Asia and North America. The steelhead (sometimes called "steelhead trout") is an anadromous (sea-run) form of the coasta ...
(''Onchorynchus mykiss'') which created a valuable wild fishery (a mounted specimen in Restaurante Lucho, Aquitania, reportedly early in the 1990s, weighed 7 kg) and cage culture aquaculture, but predation on native fish species as led to the probable extinction of the pez graso or grease fish (''
Rhizosomichthys totae'') believed native to only this lake.
Lake Tota is a breeding ground for several threatened or endangered bird species, including the
least bittern
The least bittern (''Ixobrychus exilis'') is a small heron, the smallest member of the family Ardeidae found in the Americas.
Taxonomy
The least bittern was formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his re ...
(''Ixobrychus exilis bogotensis''), the
Colombian ruddy duck (''Oxyura jamaicensis andina''), the
Bogotá rail (''Rallus semiplumbeus'') and
Apolinar's wren
Apolinar's wren (''Cistothorus apolinari'') is a passerine bird in the family Troglodytidae. It is endemic to Colombia.
Taxonomy and systematics
Apolinar's wren has two subspecies, the nominate ''Cistothorus apolinari apolinari'' and ''C. ...
(''Cistothorus apolinari''). The last confirmed sighting of the
Colombian grebe
The Colombian grebe (''Podiceps andinus''), was a grebe found in the Bogotá wetlands on the Bogotá savanna in the Eastern Ranges of the Andes of Colombia. The species was still abundant in Lake Tota in 1945. The species has occasionally been ...
(''Podiceps andinus''), now considered to be extinct, was at Lake Tota.
Lake Tota
- Bird Life International
BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding ...
- accessed 02-05-2016
Etymology
In the Chibcha language
Chibcha, Mosca, Muisca, Muysca (*/ˈmɨska/), or Muysca de Bogotá, was a language spoken by the Muisca people of the Muisca Confederation, one of the many Indigenous peoples in Colombia, indigenous List of pre-Columbian cultures, cultures of ...
of the Muisca people
The Muisca (also called Chibcha) are an indigenous people and culture of the Altiplano Cundiboyacense, Colombia, that formed the Muisca Confederation before the Spanish conquest. The people spoke Muysccubun, a language of the Chibchan lang ...
, Tota means "Farmfields of the river".[Etymology Tota]
- Excelsio.net
Geography
Lake Tota consists of an area of with a length of 11.8 kilometers, a width of 6.2 kilometers and a depth of 58 meters being the largest natural lake in Colombia.
Gallery
File:TotaLagoon.jpg, View of Lake Tota
File:Lago de Tota 04.JPG, Lake Tota
File:Tota Lake 8.JPG, Lake Tota
File:Tota.jpg, Lake Tota
File:Paisaje Tota.jpg, Lake Tota landscape
File:Tota Lake Boyacá.jpg, ''Playa Blanca''
See also
* Monster of Lake Tota
The Monster of Lake Tota is a legendary aquatic animal known in many works es, diablo ballena, lit=devil whale, label=as. The monster is an inhabitant of Lake Tota in present-day Colombia, according to the Muisca, who inhabited the Altiplano C ...
* Muisca religion
Muisca religion describes the religion of the Muisca people, Muisca who inhabited the central highlands of the Colombian Andes before the Spanish conquest of the Muisca. The Muisca formed a Muisca Confederation, confederation of holy Muisca ruler ...
* Lake Guatavita
Lake Guatavita (Spanish: ''Laguna Guatavita'') is located in the Cordillera Oriental of the Colombian Andes in the municipality of Sesquilé in the Almeidas Province, Cundinamarca department of Colombia, northeast of Bogotá, the capital of ...
, Lake Iguaque
Lake Iguaque is a lake located in the Boyacá Department of Colombia. The lake and the surrounding area was declared a Flora and Fauna Sanctuary in 1977.
Geography and climate
Lake Iguaque is located northeast of Villa de Leyva and is part of th ...
, Lake Suesca
Lake Suesca is a natural water body situated on the Altiplano Cundiboyacense, belonging to the municipalities of Suesca and Cucunubá in the department of Cundinamarca, Colombia. The basin has a semi-elliptical shape that extends on a north–s ...
, Siecha Lakes
The Siecha Lakes are three glacial lakes located in the Chingaza Natural National Park in Cundinamarca, Colombia. The Andean lakes are considered sacred in the religion of the Muisca who inhabited the area before the Spanish conquest of the Mu ...
References
External links
*
Lake Tota in the Province of Sugamuxi - videos and more information
- accessed 02-05-2016
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tota, Lake
Lakes of Colombia
Geography of Boyacá Department
Tota
Underwater diving sites in Colombia
Tota
Lakes
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 larger ...
Tota