Hulun Lake

Where is Hulun Lake?

Countries on its shores: China.

Middle of the lake: 48.97° N, 117.44° E

The story behind it

Hulun Lake is about 90 km long and up to 27 km wide, but it is shallow: on average less than 6 metres deep. The Kherlen River flows in from the south-west and the Orshuun Gol from the east. Usually no river flows out. Only in very wet years does the lake spill over in the north, and the water finds its way to the Argun River and on to the Amur. More than 200 kinds of birds live on the lake and its shores, among them swans, wild geese and the very rare red-crowned crane. At least 30 kinds of fish swim in the water, and people also catch shrimps and crayfish here. Large reed beds grow along the shore. Since 2002 the area has been protected as an important wetland. The border city of Manzhouli lies nearby. Because the lake depends on rain, its depth and size change from year to year.

Find it on the globe

Hulun Lake 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.