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 Papua New Guinea,Lake Kutubu at Ramsar site after Lake Murray, and, at 800 m above sea level, the largest upland body of water,Pilot and Demonstration Activities: Integrated Catchment Management in Lake Kutubu, Papua New Guinea at
Asian Development Bank
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is a regional development bank established on 19 December 1966, which is headquartered in the Ortigas Center located in the city of Mandaluyong, Metro Manila, Philippines. The bank also maintains 31 field offic ...
website with an area of 49.24 km², and a total
catchment
A drainage basin is an area of land where all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows into another body of water, such as a lake or ocean. A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, t ...
area of 250 km². Lake Kutubu and
Lake Sentani
Lake Sentani is a tropical, shallow, and at low-altitude open lake located at the northeast extremity of the Jayapura Regency in the Indonesian province of Papua, about from the provincial capital, Jayapura City. It is located just to the south ...
form an
ecoregion
An ecoregion (ecological region) or ecozone (ecological zone) is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than a bioregion, which in turn is smaller than a biogeographic realm. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of ...
on the WWF's
Global 200
The Global 200 is the list of ecoregions identified by the World Wide Fund for Nature ( WWF), the global conservation organization, as priorities for conservation. According to WWF, an ecoregion is defined as a "relatively large unit of land or w ...
.Lakes Kutubu and Sentani at WWF
Kutubu lies in the
Southern Highlands Province
Southern Highlands is a province in Papua New Guinea. Its provincial capital is the town of Mendi. According to Papua New Guinea's national 2011 census, the total population of Southern Highlands (after the separation of Hela Province) is 515,511 ...
of
Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...
, east of the
Kikori River
The Kikori River is a major river in southern Papua New Guinea on the island of New Guinea. The river has a total length of and flows southeast into the Gulf of Papua, with its delta at the head of the gulf. The settlement of Kikori lies on the de ...
into which it drains, and about 50 km southwest of
Mendi
Mendi, Papua New Guinea, is the provincial capital of the Southern Highlands Province. The Lai River flows by the town. It is served by Mendi Airport. The town falls under Mendi Urban LLG.
Geography
The town is located in the Mendi River V ...
, the provincial capital. It is one of the few lakes in the country that occurs in a depression in the rugged interior mountains.
The lake has a few islands, the largest of which is Wasemi in its northern part. The water of Lake Kutubu, fed by several streams originating mostly from underground sources, is clear and reaches a depth of 70 m (230 feet). The catchment is inhabited by two main
ethnic
An ethnic group or an ethnicity is a grouping of people who identify with each other on the basis of shared attributes that distinguish them from other groups. Those attributes can include common sets of traditions, ancestry, language, history, ...
Fasu
Fasu, also known as Namo Me, is one of the Kutubuan languages of New Guinea
New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; id, Papua, or , historically ) is the world's second-largest island with an area of . Located in Oceania in the southwe ...
to the north. Thirty-three villages lie in the catchment area, with a total estimated population of 10,885.
The lake gave its name to the nearby
Kutubu Oil Project
Lake Kutubu is the second-largest lake in Papua New Guinea,Lake Kutubu at Ramsar site after oilfield
A petroleum reservoir or oil and gas reservoir is a subsurface accumulation of hydrocarbons contained in porous or fractured rock formations.
Such reservoirs form when kerogen (ancient plant matter) is created in surrounding rock by the presence ...
development, operated by
Oil Search Limited
Oil Search was the largest oil and gas exploration and development company incorporated in Papua New Guinea, which operates all of Papua New Guinea's oilfields. In December 2021, it merged with the Australian company Santos.
History
Oil Searc ...
, and which began production in 1992. The development has supported the local economy, and caused a general in-migration to the area, as well as ecological problems resulting from rapid population growth, including pollution, forest destruction and overfishing. A proposed gas pipeline and road are expected to exacerbate these problems unless they are well-managed.
Fauna
Lake Kutubu includes 13
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...
fish
Fish are aquatic, craniate, gill-bearing animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish as well as various extinct related groups. Approximately 95% of ...
species, making it the most unusual
lacustrine
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 ...
habitat for fishes in the
New Guinea
New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; id, Papua, or , historically ) is the world's second-largest island with an area of . Located in Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is separated from Australia by the wide Torr ...
Oloplotosus torobo
The Kutubu tandan (''Oloplotosus torobo'') is a species of fish in the family Plotosidae. It is endemic to Lake Kutubu in the Kikori River system, Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua ...
'')
* Lake Kutubu rainbowfish (''
Melanotaenia lacustris
The Lake Kutubu rainbowfish (''Melanotaenia lacustris'') is a species of fish in the family Melanotaeniidae. It is also known as turquoise rainbowfish. It is one of 13
fish endemic to Lake Kutubu, a lake found within the Kikori River system in Pa ...
'')
* Kutubu hardyhead (''
Craterocephalus lacustris
The Kutubu hardyhead (''Craterocephalus lacustris'') is a species of fish in the family Atherinidae. It is endemic to Lake Kutubu and its outlet, the Soro River, in the Kikori River system, Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea (abbreviated ...
'')
* Adamson's grunter (''
Hephaestus adamsoni
Adamson's grunter (''Hephaestus adamsoni'') is a species of freshwater ray-finned fish, a grunter from the family Terapontidae which is endemic to Lake Kutubu in the Kikori River system, Papua New Guinea.
Habitat and biology
Adamson's grunter is ...
'')
* Black mogurnda (''
Mogurnda furva
''Mogurnda furva'', the black mogurnda, is a species of fish in the family Eleotridae endemic to Lake Kutubu in Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independen ...
'')
* Lake Kutubu mogurnda (''
Mogurnda kutubuensis
''Mogurnda'' is a genus of freshwater fishes in the family Eleotridae native to eastern and northern Australia and New Guinea. Several species are endemic to Lake Kutubu in Papua New Guinea.
Species
The currently recognized species in this genus ...
'')
* ''
Mogurnda maccuneae
''Mogurnda'' is a genus of freshwater fishes in the family Eleotridae native to eastern and northern Australia and New Guinea. Several species are endemic to Lake Kutubu in Papua New Guinea.
Species
The currently recognized species in this genu ...
undescribed species
In taxonomy, an undescribed taxon is a taxon (for example, a species) that has been discovered, but not yet formally described and named. The various Nomenclature Codes specify the requirements for a new taxon to be validly described and named. U ...
of ''
Glossogobius
''Glossogobius'' is a genus of gobies native to fresh, brackish and marine waters from Africa to the coasts of the western Pacific Ocean. They are found in Madagascar, South Africa, Japan, Thailand, Australia, Indonesia, Bangladesh, the Philippin ...
'' (tentatively known as "new sp. 8" and "new sp. 12")
Additionally, the Parastacid crayfish '' Cherax papuanus'' is endemic to the lake.
Conservation
Because of its biodiversity and ecological significance, the area has been designated a "Wetland of International Significance" by the
Ramsar Convention
The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance Especially as Waterfowl Habitat is an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable use of Ramsar site, Ramsar sites (wetlands). It is also known as the Convention on W ...
. The area included in this designation matches the Lake Kutubu
Wildlife Management Area
A Wildlife Management Area (WMA) is a protected area set aside for the conservation of wildlife and for recreational activities involving wildlife.
New Zealand
There are 11 Wildlife Management Areas in New Zealand:
* Horsham Downs Wildlife Man ...
(240.57 km²).Kikori River Basin - Great Papuan Plateau at World Heritage Sites tentative lists The area is undergoing study by the
World Wildlife Fund
The World Wide Fund for Nature Inc. (WWF) is an international non-governmental organization founded in 1961 that works in the field of wilderness preservation and the reduction of human impact on the environment. It was formerly named the Wo ...
and the drafting of a
catchment
A drainage basin is an area of land where all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows into another body of water, such as a lake or ocean. A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, t ...
management plan has commenced, which is anticipated to become a model for other catchments in Papua New Guinea. The project is to be completed by December 2007.Lake Kutubu Catchment Management Plan: Project Inception Report , page 5 The Lake Kutubu area is also included in the tentatively listed Kikori River Basin -
Great Papuan Plateau
The Great Papuan Plateau is a karst plateau in the Southern Highlands, Hela and Western Provinces of Papua New Guinea. It is bordered the upper stretches of the Kikori River and the Strickland River on the east and west, respectively, and the ...
World Heritage Site
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
Kutubu
Lake Kutubu is the second-largest lake in Papua New Guinea,Lake Kutubu at Ramsar site after Kutubu
Lake Kutubu is the second-largest lake in Papua New Guinea,Lake Kutubu at Ramsar site after Ramsar sites in Papua New Guinea