Gömmaren is a small lake

Lake

A lake is a body of relatively still fresh or salt water of considerable size, localized in a basin, that is surrounded by land. Lakes are inland and not part of the ocean and therefore are distinct from lagoons, and are larger and deeper than ponds. Lakes can be contrasted with rivers or streams,...

 located in the municipality Huddinge in southern Stockholm

Stockholm

Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...

, Sweden

Sweden

Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....

. It is the easternmost lake in the Tyresån Lake System

Tyresån Lake System

Tyresån Lake System is a number of lakes in Sweden with a common basin of 251.5 km2....

.

The lake empties to the west through Gömmarbäcken ("Gömmaren Rill") and to the east through Fullerstaån ("Fullersta Stream"), which is further downstream guided in culverts under the commercial centre of Huddinge (Huddinge Centrum) before flowing south-east to empty into Lake Trehörningen

Trehörningen (Sjödalen)

Trehörningen is a small lake located in the municipality Huddinge in southern Stockholm, Sweden. As part of the Tyresån lake system, Trehörningen receives water from Lake Gömmaren and supplies water to Lake Ågesta.- History :...

. Motorboats are not allowed on the lake. Its clear water makes it popular for various open-air activities such as angling and bathing in summer, and skating in winters as it is one of the first lakes in Huddinge to freeze. Bathing from cliffs surrounding the lake is popular, but a sand beach is also available. A local fishing society (Långsjön-Gömmarens Fiskevårdsförening) is managing lake conservation and supply the general public with fishing permits.

History

Notwithstanding the lake's name, documented from the 18th century and most likely hinting at the hidden away location, settlements have been present by the lake since the Stone Age. The property of Vårby Gård, a nearby homestead, used to reach the lake in the 18th century, but the central building burnt down in 1975 and none of its gardens, brewing, bakery, smithy, or poultry houses are left.

Catchment area

The lake is located in a forest forming part of the Gömmaren Nature Reserve

Gömmaren Nature Reserve

Gömmaren Nature Reserve is a nature reserve centred on Lake Gömmaren in the north of Huddinge Municipality south of central Stockholm, Sweden. The reserve was created in 1995....

 created in 1995 and as such is considered as important for recreation

Recreation

Recreation is an activity of leisure, leisure being discretionary time. The "need to do something for recreation" is an essential element of human biology and psychology. Recreational activities are often done for enjoyment, amusement, or pleasure and are considered to be "fun"...

 and nature conservation, a popular destination both for lovers of open-air life and for schools.

Environmental influence

The water of the lake is very clear and virtually colourless, which reflects the nutrient-poor flat rock

Flat Rock

Flat Rock may refer to:United States* Flat Rock, Alabama* Flat Rock, Illinois* Flat Rock, Indiana* Flat Rock, Michigan* Flat Rock, Surry County, North Carolina* Flat Rock, Henderson County, North Carolina* Flat Rock, Stokes County, North Carolina...

 pine

Pine

Pines are trees in the genus Pinus ,in the family Pinaceae. They make up the monotypic subfamily Pinoideae. There are about 115 species of pine, although different authorities accept between 105 and 125 species.-Etymology:...

 forest of the surrounding area. Most of nutrient contribution to the lake comes from settlements south of the lake, also responsible for about 80 per cent of the phosphorus

Phosphorus

Phosphorus is the chemical element that has the symbol P and atomic number 15. A multivalent nonmetal of the nitrogen group, phosphorus as a mineral is almost always present in its maximally oxidized state, as inorganic phosphate rocks...

 input. A hydrogeological

Hydrogeology

Hydrogeology is the area of geology that deals with the distribution and movement of groundwater in the soil and rocks of the Earth's crust, . The term geohydrology is often used interchangeably...

 examination in 1985 showed the surrounding soil is poorly fit to take up increased levels of waste water. Acidification has been neutralized by liming

Lime (mineral)

Lime is a general term for calcium-containing inorganic materials, in which carbonates, oxides and hydroxides predominate. Strictly speaking, lime is calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide. It is also the name for a single mineral of the CaO composition, occurring very rarely...

 which has produced excellent pH

PH

In chemistry, pH is a measure of the acidity or basicity of an aqueous solution. Pure water is said to be neutral, with a pH close to 7.0 at . Solutions with a pH less than 7 are said to be acidic and solutions with a pH greater than 7 are basic or alkaline...

-levels.

Flora and fauna

Many species of aquatic plant

Aquatic plant

Aquatic plants are plants that have adapted to living in aquatic environments. They are also referred to as hydrophytes or aquatic macrophytes. These plants require special adaptations for living submerged in water, or at the water's surface. Aquatic plants can only grow in water or in soil that is...

s are present in the lake: Reed

Phragmites

Phragmites, the Common reed, is a large perennial grass found in wetlands throughout temperate and tropical regions of the world. Phragmites australis is sometimes regarded as the sole species of the genus Phragmites, though some botanists divide Phragmites australis into three or four species...

, Common Club-rush, Water Horsetail

Water Horsetail

The water horsetail , also known as the Swamp Horsetail, is a perennial horsetail that commonly grows in dense colonies along freshwater shorelines or in shallow water, growing in ponds, swamps, ditches, and other sluggish or still waters with mud bottoms...

, Narrow Leaf Cattail

Typha angustifolia

Typha angustifolia L., , is a perennial herbaceous plant of genus Typha. This cattail is an "obligate wetland" species that is commonly found in the northern hemisphere in brackish locations...

, White Beak-sedge, Gypsywort

Gypsywort

Lycopus europaeus is a perennial plant in the Lycopus genus, native to Europe and Asia, and naturalized in the United States.-Habitat:...

, Bulbous Rush, White Waterlily

Nymphaea alba

Nymphaea alba, also known as the European White Waterlily, White Lotus, or Nenuphar, is an aquatic flowering plant of the family Nymphaeaceae....

, Broad-leaved Pondweed, Alternate Water-milfoil, and Intermediate Bladderwort. Along the shores are Grey Willow, Goat Willow

Goat Willow

Salix caprea , is a common species of willow native to Europe and western and central Asia....

, Aspen

Aspen

Populus section Populus, of the Populus genus, includes the aspen trees and the white poplar Populus alba. The five typical aspens are all native to cold regions with cool summers, in the north of the Northern Hemisphere, extending south at high altitudes in the mountains. The White Poplar, by...

, Black Alder, Bog-myrtle

Myrica gale

Myrica gale is a species of flowering plant in the genus Myrica, native to northern and western Europe and parts of northern North America. It is a deciduous shrub growing to 1–2 m tall. Common names include Bog Myrtle and Sweet Gale...

, Tall Bog-sedge, Common Sedge, Bottle Sedge, Slender Sedge, Cranberry

Cranberry

Cranberries are a group of evergreen dwarf shrubs or trailing vines in the subgenus Oxycoccus of the genus Vaccinium. In some methods of classification, Oxycoccus is regarded as a genus in its own right...

, and Round-leaved Sundew.

Fish species native to the lake include Northern Pike

Northern Pike

The northern pike , is a species of carnivorous fish of the genus Esox...

, Perch

Perch

Perch is a common name for fish of the genus Perca, freshwater gamefish belonging to the family Percidae. The perch, of which there are three species in different geographical areas, lend their name to a large order of vertebrates: the Perciformes, from the Greek perke meaning spotted, and the...

, Roach, and, to some degree, Rudd

Rudd

The common rudd Scardinius erythropthalmus is a bentho-pelagic freshwater fish, widely spread in Europe and middle Asia, around the basins of the North, Baltic, Black, Caspian and Aral seas.-Artificially introduced:...

. There are many introduced species such as Rainbow Trout

Rainbow trout

The rainbow trout is a species of salmonid native to tributaries of the Pacific Ocean in Asia and North America. The steelhead is a sea run rainbow trout usually returning to freshwater to spawn after 2 to 3 years at sea. In other words, rainbow trout and steelhead trout are the same species....

, North American Brook Trout

Brook trout

The brook trout, Salvelinus fontinalis, is a species of fish in the salmon family of order Salmoniformes. In many parts of its range, it is known as the speckled trout or squaretail. A potamodromous population in Lake Superior are known as coaster trout or, simply, as coasters...

, Trout

Trout

Trout is the name for a number of species of freshwater and saltwater fish belonging to the Salmoninae subfamily of the family Salmonidae. Salmon belong to the same family as trout. Most salmon species spend almost all their lives in salt water...

, and the hybrid species Splake

Splake

The splake is a hybrid of two fish species resulting from the crossing of a male brook trout and a female lake trout...

 making the lake well-attended by anglers during both summers and winters. Crayfish plague

Crayfish plague

Crayfish plague, Aphanomyces astaci, is a water mould that infects crayfish, most notably the European Astacus which dies within a few weeks of being infected...

 eliminated the population of Noble Crayfish

Astacus astacus

Astacus astacus, the European crayfish, noble crayfish or broad-fingered crayfish, is the most common species of crayfish in Europe, and a traditional foodstuff. Like other crayfish, Astacus astacus is restricted to fresh water, living only in unpolluted streams, rivers and lakes...

 in 1987, but some 1.200 Signal Crayfish

Signal crayfish

The signal crayfish, Pacifastacus leniusculus, is a North American species of crayfish. It was introduced to Europe in the 1960s to supplement the Scandinavian Astacus astacus fisheries, which were being damaged by crayfish plague, but the imports turned out to be a carrier of that disease...

s were introduced in the early 1990s.

Common birds are Mallard

Mallard

The Mallard , or Wild Duck , is a dabbling duck which breeds throughout the temperate and subtropical Americas, Europe, Asia, and North Africa, and has been introduced to New Zealand and Australia....

 and Common Gull

Common Gull

The Common Gull or Mew Gull Larus canus is a medium-sized gull which breeds in northern Asia, northern Europe and northwestern North America. It migrates further south in winter...

, but other species such as Common Goldeneye

Common Goldeneye

The Common Goldeneye is a medium-sized sea duck of the genus Bucephala, the goldeneyes. Their closest relative is the similar Barrow's Goldeneye....

, Common Tern

Common Tern

The Common Tern is a seabird of the tern family Sternidae. This bird has a circumpolar distribution, breeding in temperate and sub-Arctic regions of Europe, Asia and east and central North America. It is strongly migratory, wintering in coastal tropical and subtropical regions. It is sometimes...

, and a couple of Black-throated Diver

Black-throated Diver

The Black-throated Loon is a migratory aquatic bird found in the northern hemisphere. The species is known as an Arctic Loon in North America and the Black-throated Diver in Eurasia, its current name is a compromise proposed by the International Ornithological Committee.-Taxonomy:The...

 are breeding by the lake and Herons

Ardea (genus)

Ardea is a genus of herons. Linnaeus named this genus as the Great Herons, referring to the generally large size of these birds, typically 80–100 cm or more in length....

 and Osprey

Osprey

The Osprey , sometimes known as the sea hawk or fish eagle, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey. It is a large raptor, reaching more than in length and across the wings...

s are feeding in the area. Trees by the lake shores also attract Long-tailed Tit

Long-tailed Tit

The Long-tailed Tit or Long-tailed Bushtit is a common bird found throughout Europe and Asia. There are several extensive accounts of this species, most notably Cramp and Perrins, 1993; Gaston, 1973; and Harrap and Quinn, 1996...

 and Lesser Spotted Woodpecker

Lesser Spotted Woodpecker

The Lesser Spotted Woodpecker is a member of the woodpecker family Picidae. It is assigned to the genus Dendrocopos ....

, and occasionally Whooper Swan

Whooper Swan

The Whooper Swan , Cygnus cygnus, is a large Northern Hemisphere swan. It is the Eurasian counterpart of the North American Trumpeter Swan. An old name for the Whooper Swan is Elk; it is so called in Francis Willughby and John Ray's Ornithology of 1676.-Description:The Whooper Swan is similar in...

, and Great Crested Grebe

Great Crested Grebe

The Great Crested Grebe is a member of the grebe family of water birds.- Description :The Great Crested Grebe is long with a wingspan. It is an excellent swimmer and diver, and pursues its fish prey underwater. The adults are unmistakable in summer with head and neck decorations...

 are reported by the lake.

Additionally, many species of dragonflies

Odonata

Odonata is an order of insects, encompassing dragonflies and damselflies . The word dragonfly is also sometimes used to refer to all Odonata, but the back-formation odonate is a more correct English name for the group as a whole...

 have been reported but no inventory of bat

Bat

Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera "hand" and pteron "wing") whose forelimbs form webbed wings, making them the only mammals naturally capable of true and sustained flight. By contrast, other mammals said to fly, such as flying squirrels, gliding possums, and colugos, glide rather than fly,...

s have been made.