Taal Lake

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Taal Lake, Philippines
Satellite image showing Taal Lake with Volcano island within it
Lake type	Crater
Primary outflows	Pansipit River
Basin countries	Batangas, Philippines
Max length	25 km
Max width	18 km
Shore length¹	115 km
Surface elevation	5 m
Islands	Volcano Island
Settlements	Western Batangas
¹ Shore length is an imprecise measure which may not be standardized for this article.

Taal Lake is a freshwater lake in the province of Batangas, on the island of Luzon, Philippines. The lake is situated within a caldera formed by very large eruptions between 500,000 and 100,000 years ago. It is the country's third largest lake (the largest being Laguna de Bay). The active Taal Volcano, which is the one responsible for the lake's sulfuric content, lies on an island in the center of the lake, called Volcano Island.

1 History
2 Ecology
3 Tourism
4 Trivia
5 External links

[edit] History

Taal Lake was once just an arm of Balayan Bay. However, after a series of major eruptions in the 16th century, the lake was closed off from the sea by newly-formed land bridges. Taal Lake's sole connection to the sea narrowed down into its sole draining river, the Pansipit River. Several centuries of precipitation have diluted the lake's once-saline waters into pure freshwater.

Succeeding eruptions buried numerous lakeside towns. Presently, only three towns are on the lake's shore. Old lakeside towns with buildings and walls are reported to be seen under the lake's waters.

[edit] Ecology

Because the lake was until recently, connected to the sea, it is home to many endemic species that have evolved and adapted to the desalinization of the lake's waters.

Its most popular endemic species is the overharvested tawilis, the world's only freshwater sardine.

The lake has a freshwater-adapted population of trevally, Caranx ignobilis. These fish, also found in the Pansipit River, are locally called maliputo.

View of the Taal Volcano from the lake.

Taal Lake is also home to one of the world's rarest sea snakes, Hydrophis semperi. This particular species is only one of two "true" sea snake species that are known to live entirely in freshwater.

Bull sharks, Carcharhinus leucas, used to be part of the lake's once-diverse ecosystem. They were exterminated by the locals in the 1930s.

[edit] Tourism

Regular tours of the lake are available to tourists. After crossing the lake, visitors travel to the top of Volcano Island on horseback. During their trip up and down the mountain, visitors are treated to a stunning view of the lake and its surroundings.