Lake Be Malae
Lake Be Malae, also spelt Bemalae, is a 3,000 hectares (7,400 acres) lagoon in the district of Bobonaro on the north-west coast of East Timor, a country occupying the eastern end of the island of Timor in the Lesser Sunda Islands of Wallacea.[1]
![](../I/Hundreds_of_waterbirds_in_distance_on_Lake_Bemalae_21_Sep_2004.jpg.webp)
![](../I/Mangrove_lined_Lagoon_outlet_for_Lake_Bemalae%252C_21_May_2005.jpg.webp)
Lake Be Malae | |
---|---|
Portuguese name | |
Portuguese | Lago Bemalae |
Tetum name | |
Tetum | Bemalae |
Description
The lake is a broad and shallow expanse of saline water and mudflats which sometimes largely dries up. Its margins are vegetated by mangroves and dry forest. Its outlet is a winding, mangrove-lined channel leading to the sea.[1][2]
Birds
The lake and its surrounds have been identified by BirdLife International as a 28,000 ha Important Bird Area because they support populations of bar-necked cuckoo-doves, pink-headed imperial pigeons, jonquil parrots, streak-breasted honeyeaters, plain gerygones, fawn-breasted whistlers, green figbirds, olive-brown orioles, buff-banded thicketbirds, white-bellied bush chats and flame-breasted sunbirds.[2]
References
- Chan S, Crosby MJ, Islam MZ, Tordoff AW (2004). Important Bird Areas of Asia: Key Sites for Conservation. BirdLife Conservation Series. Cambridge: BirdLife International. pp. 259–260. ISBN 9780946888542.
- "Be Malae-Atabae". Important Bird Areas factsheet. BirdLife International. 2014. Retrieved 19 March 2014.