Lake Büyükçekmece () is a liman formed at the point where the river Karasudere flows into the

Marmara Sea The Sea of Marmara, also known as the Sea of Marmora or the Marmara Sea, is a small inland sea entirely within the borders of Turkey. It links the Black Sea and the Aegean Sea via the Bosporus and Dardanelles straits, separating Turkey's E ...

. The lake is located south of the

Çatalca Çatalca () is a municipality and Districts of Turkey, district of Istanbul Province, Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 1142 km2, making it the largest district in Istanbul Province by area. Its population is 77,468 (2022). It is in Eas ...

district, west of

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

. It is used as a freshwater reservoir. The lake's

bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar ** Chocolate bar * Protein bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a laye ...

was reinforced in 1988 by a

dam A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use, aqua ...

. The area of the lake is , and is long and wide. The maximum depth is , following deepening carried out by the

State Hydraulic Works The State Hydraulic Works () is a state agency, under the Ministry of Environment and Forestry of Turkey, responsible for the utilization of all the country's water resources. The institution's four major functions are energy, agriculture, servi ...

. The

fluvial A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of its course if it ru ...

lake developed as the flow of Karasudere, and as it came downwards from Çatalca it was blocked off and formed by the resulting sandbank it created. A reedy, brackish salt-water lake exists between the Büyükçekmece Dam and the

. Another lagoon,

Lake Küçükçekmece Lake Küçükçekmece () is a lagoon located between the Küçükçekmece, Esenyurt and Avcılar districts of the European portion of Istanbul Province, northwestern Turkey. The lake is neighbored in the south by state road D.100 and in the nort ...

, is located around east of Lake Büyükçekmece. The number of fish species observed in the lake has decreased from 30 in the past to 15 currently. A historic long and wide multiple arch

bridge A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...

, named after the Ottoman architect

Mimar Sinan Mimar Sinan (; , ; – 17 July 1588) also known as Koca Mi'mâr Sinân Âğâ, ("Sinan Agha (title), Agha the Grand Architect" or "Grand Sinan") was the chief Ottoman Empire, Ottoman architect, engineer and mathematician for sultans Suleiman ...

(1489-1588), spans the narrow opening at the bar connecting the lake to the sea. At the northern shore of the lake,

Istanbul Hezarfen Airfield Hezarfen Airfield () is a privately owned airport for general aviation in the Çatalca district of Istanbul, Turkey. It is one of a total of five airports in Istanbul along with Istanbul Airport (LTFM), Istanbul Sabiha Gökçen International Ai ...

is situated on a peninsula.

Biology and status

The lake, which is not protected, was declared by

BirdLife 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 i ...

as an

Important Bird Area An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations. IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife Int ...

in 1989 for its numerous distinct and threatened

waterfowl Anseriformes is an order of birds also known as waterfowl that comprises about 180 living species of birds in three families: Anhimidae (three species of screamers), Anseranatidae (the magpie goose), and Anatidae, the largest family, which i ...

species.

References

Lagoons of Turkey Geography of Istanbul Marmara region Büyükçekmece Important Bird Areas of Turkey Landforms of Istanbul Province {{Istanbul-geo-stub

Biology and status

See also

References