Beaverhill Lake

Beaverhill Lake
Beaverhill Lake from Francis Viewpoint in 2010
Location Beaver County / Lamont County, Alberta
Coordinates 53°27′09″N 112°32′08″W / 53.45250°N 112.53556°W / 53.45250; -112.53556Coordinates: 53°27′09″N 112°32′08″W / 53.45250°N 112.53556°W / 53.45250; -112.53556
Basin countries Canada
Surface area 139 square kilometres (54 sq mi)
Max. depth 2.3 metres (7 ft 7 in)
Official name Beaverhill Lake
Designated 27 May 1987
Reference no. 370[1]

Beaverhill Lake (Cree: amisk-wa-chi-sakhahigan) is a large lake in central Alberta, Canada. It is a site of regional importance in the Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network.[2] It is managed by the Canadian Wildlife Service division of Environment Canada.

It is located 70 km southeast of Edmonton, near the town of Tofield, and lies in the hydrographic basin of North Saskatchewan River.[3]

As recently as 1990, the lake had a total area of 139 km² and a maximum depth of only 2.3 m.[3] Like similar "prairie pothole" lakes, Beaverhill lake has receded significantly in recent years, losing about one quarter of its depth between 1999 and 2009.[4]

The lake is an important bird habitat, and has been designated as a "National Nature Viewpoint" by Nature Canada (formerly known as the Canadian Nature Federation) in 1981. The Beaverhill Natural Area was established in 1987 to protect the lake and its surrounding area. Beaverhill Lake Heritage Rangeland Natural Area is also established on what were the shores of the lake.[5]

The Beaverhill Lake Group, a stratigraphical unit of the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin was named for this lake.

References

  1. ↑ "Beaverhill Lake". Ramsar Sites Information Service. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
  2. ↑ "Beaverhill Lake: Site Description". Manomet Center For Conservation Sciences. Retrieved 2008-02-18.
  3. 1 2 Mitchell, Patricia; Prepas, Ellie E. (1990). Atlas of Alberta Lakes. University of Alberta Press. ISBN 978-0-88864-214-1. Archived from the original on 2015-02-10.
  4. ↑ Weber, Bob (20 July 2009). "Birds at risk as Prairie lakes dry up". Winnipeg Free Press. Retrieved 12 May 2012.
  5. ↑ Alberta Community Development - Beavehill Natural Area Archived 2004-08-13 at the Wayback Machine., Beaverhill Lake Heritage Rangeland Natural Area


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