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News: The scientists have found 18-20 million years old enamel proteins from tropical Turakan Lake basin, unraveling palaeobiology of extinct taxa.
About Lake Turkana
- It is a saline lake located mainly in northern Kenya, with its northern end stretching into Ethiopia.
- It lies in the eastern arm of eastern Africa’s Rift Valley, which is part of the East African Rift System.
- It is the world’s largest permanent desert lake and the world’s largest alkaline lake.
- By volume it is the world’s fourth-largest salt lake after the Caspian Sea, Issyk-Kul, and Lake Van (passing the shrinking South Aral Sea).
- Type: It is an endorheic lake (meaning no outflow) and water loss occurs mainly through evaporation.
- Water source: Its only perennial tributary is the Omo River, which flows from Ethiopia.
- Biodiversity: The Lake hosts 79 fish species, including 12 endemics, and the largest population of Nile crocodiles.
- Recognition: The Lake Turkana National Parks site was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1997.
- Threat: Lake Turkana is now threatened by the construction of the Gilgel Gibe III Dam in Ethiopia due to the damming of the Omo river which supplies most of the lake’s water.
