Herons on Rusted Ruins of Miramar, Mar Chiquita, Argentina

Herons and gulls rest on the rusted ruins of the coastal city of Miramar on the shores of Mar Chiquita, Cordoba, Argentina. In the mid-1980s Mar Chiquita rose 9 m (30') and flooded the city as well as many other resorts and ranches on the shores of this inland lake. The lake has since receded, and Miramar is once again a popular tourist destination. Although high waters could return, a bigger worry for the lake is that agricultural diversions will rob the lake of water and it will dry up. The current salinity of 65 g/L produces large quantities of invertebrate prey for birds, but if salinities rise above 200 g/L abundances and species diversity will decrease greatly.

Photo: 9 April 2011
Limnology: The study of inland waters