Larnaca Salt Lake

Where is Larnaca Salt Lake?

Countries on its shores: Cyprus.

Largest lake of: Cyprus.

Middle of the lake: 34.90° N, 33.62° E

The story behind it

Larnaca Salt Lake is really a group of four salt lakes, three of which are connected. Together they cover about 2.2 km², and on average the water is only about 1 metre deep. Between November and March, thousands of greater flamingos come here – up to 12 000 birds. Some of them even raise their young at the lake. Many other birds, such as ducks and shelducks, visit too. In summer the sun dries the water up, and a white crust of salt stays behind. For a long time, people collected this salt, and it was one of the island's most important goods to sell to other countries. The last salt was harvested in 1986. On the western shore stands the Hala Sultan Tekke, an old mosque. An old legend says Saint Lazarus turned a vineyard into this salt lake.

Find it on the globe

Larnaca Salt 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.