Lake · Guinea-Bissau
Cufada Lagoon
Cufada Lagoon is a shallow lake in the south of Guinea-Bissau, in West Africa. Despite its name, it holds fresh water, not salt water, and it is full of water plants.
Where is Cufada Lagoon?
Countries on its shores: Guinea-Bissau.
Largest lake of: Guinea-Bissau.
Middle of the lake: 11.72° N, 15.03° W
The story behind it
Cufada Lagoon lies in the Quinara region and is the largest freshwater lake in Guinea-Bissau. In the rainy season its water covers about 190 hectares, which is just under 2 km². Its size changes with the seasons, so this number is only a rough guide. Water lilies and a kind of wild rice grow in the shallow water. Around the lake lies a large protected area, the Lagoas de Cufada Natural Park, which covers about 890 km². It was the first protected area in Guinea-Bissau. Hippos and crocodiles live in and around the water, and in the park people have counted 337 kinds of birds and 54 kinds of mammals. About a dozen small villages lie in the area, where people fish and grow rice. Since 1990 the lake and its wetlands have been a Ramsar site, which means they are wetlands of international importance.
Find it on the globe
Cufada Lagoon is there as a small blue dot with its name, right on the water. From far away the planet is only a blue ball; detail arrives as you zoom in, and this one appears once you are close enough. Open it on the globe.
It sits at its real coordinates, not near them — the same numbers listed in the facts above. Switch off the layer for this kind of place and it disappears again; the buttons for that are down the right-hand edge.
Questions children ask
How big is Cufada Lagoon?
In the rainy season the lake covers about 190 hectares, or about 1.9 km². Its size changes with the seasons, while the nature park around it is much larger, about 890 km².
Which animals live at Cufada Lagoon?
Hippos and crocodiles live in and around the lake. The park is also home to many water birds, antelopes and monkeys, and even chimpanzees live in the area.
Is Cufada Lagoon the largest lake in Guinea-Bissau?
Yes, the authority that looks after the country's protected areas calls it the largest freshwater lake in Guinea-Bissau. Compared with the big lakes of Africa it is small, but it is very important for water birds.
Where these numbers come from
Every figure on this page was checked against public reference sources before publication. Where sources genuinely disagree, the text says so.
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