Llyn Pencarreg
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Birds & fish recorded
Birds
| Species | Season |
|---|---|
| pochard | Breeding |
| pochard | Wintering |
Description
Description An oligotrophic lake of kettle-hole origin. Such unproductive lakes are rare in Wales in lowland areas. The lake has no inflow or outflow streams and is assumed to have an artesian water supply. Apart from a pronounced wave-cut platform,the sides shelve steeply down to an average depth of about 7 metres (23 feet). The maximum recorded depth is about 10 metres (33 feet). The site is notable for its extremely low alkalinity (under 5 ppm of calcium carbonate), which results in a paucity of aquatic plant and animal life; a feature which is more typical of lakes at higher altitudes. The wave-cut platform supports a little emergent vegetation, principally of soft rush Juncus effusus. Aquatic vegetation is limited to shoreweed Littorella uniflora, which grows on the gravelly marginal shelf down to about 3 metres (10 feet). The few invertebrates that do occur are present in large numbers. The lake is locally important for the diversity of wintering waterfowl and for the breeding of pochard.
Species mentioned
Show the 3 species mentioned in the description, with red-list status| English name search for this in other sites |
Latin name search with Google |
IUCN / Red List | Type | Family |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| pochard | Aythya ferina | EN (NonBreeding), EN (Breeding) | bird-duck | anatidae |
| shoreweed | Littorella uniflora | LC | herb | plantaginaceae |
| soft rush | Juncus effusus | LC | rush | juncaceae |