Lake Kununurra is a long linear lake in the Ord River

Ord River

The Ord River is a 320-kilometre-long river in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. It was named in honour of Harry Ord, Governor of Western Australia from 1877 to 1880....

 valley formed in 1963 by the construction of the Ord Diversion Dam

Diversion dam

A diversion dam is the term for a dam that diverts all or a portion of the flow of a river from its natural course. Diversion dams do not generally impound water in a reservoir...

 in Kununurra

Kununurra, Western Australia

Kununurra is a town in far northern Western Australia located at the eastern extremity of the Kimberley Region approximately from the border with the Northern Territory. Kununurra was initiated to service the Ord River Irrigation scheme....

, northern Western Australia

Western Australia

Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...

, which was built to supply water to the Ord River Irrigation Area. The lake stretches for 55 km (34.2 mi) upstream from the Diversion Dam at 15°47′30"S 128°41′45"E towards the larger Lake Argyle

Lake Argyle

Lake Argyle is Australia's second largest artificial lake by volume. It is part of the Ord River Irrigation Scheme and is located near the East Kimberley town of Kununurra...

 dam

Dam

A dam is a barrier that impounds water or underground streams. Dams generally serve the primary purpose of retaining water, while other structures such as floodgates or levees are used to manage or prevent water flow into specific land regions. Hydropower and pumped-storage hydroelectricity are...

 at 16°07′15"S 128°44′17"E. At the town of Kununurra the lake is connected to Lily Creek Lagoon. It contains Freshwater Crocodile

Freshwater Crocodile

The freshwater crocodile , also known as the Australian freshwater crocodile, Johnston's crocodile or colloquially as freshie, is a species of reptile endemic to the northern regions of Australia...

s and 21 fish species, and is widely used for recreational fishing

Recreational fishing

Recreational fishing, also called sport fishing, is fishing for pleasure or competition. It can be contrasted with commercial fishing, which is fishing for profit, or subsistence fishing, which is fishing for survival....

 and boating

Boating

Boating is the leisurely activity of travelling by boat, or the recreational use of a boat whether powerboats, sailboats, or man-powered vessels , focused on the travel itself, as well as sports activities, such as fishing or water skiing...

 by the residents of Kununurra and tourists

Tourism

Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...

. Because of the stable water levels in Lake Kununurra and its associated wetlands, it has well-developed fringing vegetation of grassland

Grassland

Grasslands are areas where the vegetation is dominated by grasses and other herbaceous plants . However, sedge and rush families can also be found. Grasslands occur naturally on all continents except Antarctica...

, rushes

Juncaceae

Juncaceae, the rush family, are a monocotyledonous family of flowering plants. There are eight genera and about 400 species. Members of the Juncaceae are slow-growing, rhizomatous, herbaceous plants, and they may superficially resemble grasses. They often grow on infertile soils in a wide range...

 and woodland

Woodland

Ecologically, a woodland is a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade. Woodlands may support an understory of shrubs and herbaceous plants including grasses. Woodland may form a transition to shrubland under drier conditions or during early stages of...

. The wetland system of the two lakes and the lagoon forms the Lakes Argyle and Kununurra Ramsar Site

Lakes Argyle and Kununurra Ramsar Site

The Lakes Argyle and Kununurra Ramsar Site comprises an extensive system of artificial freshwater reservoirs, with their associated permanent wetlands, formed by damming the Ord River in the eastern part of the Kimberley Region of northern Western Australia. The reservoirs include Lake Argyle and...

.

Birds

The lake forms part of the Ord Irrigation Area

Ord Irrigation Area Important Bird Area

The Ord Irrigation Area Important Bird Area is an area of land used for irrigated agriculture along the Ord River in the vicinity of the town of Kununurra in the Kimberley region of north-western Australia...

 Important Bird Area

Important Bird Area

An Important Bird Area is an area recognized as being globally important habitat for the conservation of bird populations. Currently there are about 10,000 IBAs worldwide. The program was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife International...

 (IBA), so identified by BirdLife International

BirdLife International

BirdLife International is a global Partnership of conservation organisations that strives to conserve birds, their habitats and global biodiversity, working with people towards sustainability in the use of natural resources...

 because of its importance for wild birds, especially estrildid finch

Estrildid finch

The estrildid finches are small passerine birds of the Old World tropics and Australasia. They can be classified as the family Estrildidae , or as a sub-group within the family Passeridae, which also includes the true sparrows....

es.

External links

• Lakes Argyle and Kununurra Ramsar Site - map

• Kununurra Historical Society Inc. Archive, Library, Museum & Research (Profile on Flickr - Links to Archive Images)