| Lake Buchanan | |
|---|---|
| World Wind image of Lake Buchanan, 2010. | |
| Location | 163 km South West of Charters Towers, Queensland |
| Lake type | Salt lake |
| Basin countries | Australia |
| Surface area | 40 km² [1] |
Lake Buchanan is a flat salt lake approximately 28 km long and 8 km wide at its widest point, with a surface area of about 117 km². It is part of the Thomson River catchment and part of the Desert Uplands bioregion.[1][2]
Lake Buchanan is different from all other salt lakes in Australia because it occurs at a high elevation - on the Great Dividing Range. The lake is shallow and the water tends to be brackish.[1] Land around the lake is used for grazing.[1]
Lake Buchanan contains a number of significant species which are newly discovered and most probably endemic.[2] These include the Lake Buchanan button grass, fringing rush, Lake Buchanan fringe rush and Buchanan’s fairy shrimp. The Lake Buchanan blue bush is a threatened species belonging to the Chenopodium genus.