Lake Vrana (Cres)

Lake Vrana
Lake Vrana
	Lake Vrana on the island of Cres.
	Lake Vrana
Location	Croatia
Coordinates	44°51′N 14°23′E / 44.850°N 14.383°ECoordinates: 44°51′N 14°23′E / 44.850°N 14.383°E
Type	lake
Native name	Vransko jezero (Croatian)
Max. length	4.8 kilometres (3.0 mi)
Max. width	1.5 kilometres (0.93 mi)
Surface area	5.8 square kilometres (2.2 sq mi)
Max. depth	74 metres (243 ft)
Water volume	220,000,000 cubic metres (7.8×109 cu ft)

Lake Vrana (Croatian: Vransko jezero), in the centre of Cres island, is a fresh water lake, 1.5 kilometres (0.93 mi) wide and about 4.8 kilometres (3.0 mi) long. The town of Cres has been supplied with drinking water from the lake since 1953, and the towns of Mali and Veli Lošinj received their supplies ten years later.^[1] It was thought at one time that the water in the lake was linked to some mainland source by underground streams, but it has since been established that in fact it originates from the atmosphere.^[2]

The lake is one of cryptodepression characteristics. It was formed by very heavy tectonic movements along a longitudinal relaxation fault which now contains 220,000,000 cubic metres (7.8×10⁹ cu ft) of fresh water. Comprising an area of 5.8 square kilometres (2.2 sq mi),^[3] the depression reaches a depth of around 60 metres (200 ft) below the sea level,^[2] but its surface lies about 14 metres (46 ft) above it, oscillating by about half a metre,^[1] meaning the maximum depth is 74 metres (243 ft).^[3] It is surrounded by mountains like the 483 metres (1,585 ft) high and of 429 metres (1,407 ft).

The lake contains pike, tench and carp. There are also eels, but their origin is still unclear.

The village of Vrana, above the lake, is located 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) south of the town of Cres.

Myth of Lake Vrana[]

There is a local legend that there is a castle under the lake. According to the legend, a rich sister who lived in the castle would not give her much poorer sister money or food. As a result, she was punished by having her castle flooded during a severe thunderstorm which caused Lake Vrana to be created. The story goes on to tell that on some windy days, if one is to listen very carefully the tower bells can still be heard ringing to this day.^[4]

References[]

^ Jump up to: ^a ^b Naklada Naprijed, The Croatian Adriatic Tourist Guide, pg. 103, Zagreb (1999), ISBN 953-178-097-8
^ Jump up to: ^a ^b Biondić, Božidar; Kapelj, Sanja; Mesić, Saša (1997). Krajnc, Andrej (ed.). Tracer hydrology 97: proceedings of the 7th International Symposium on Water. Taylor & Francis. pp. 114–119. ISBN 90-5410-875-4.
^ Jump up to: ^a ^b Ostroški, Ljiljana, ed. (December 2015). Statistički ljetopis Republike Hrvatske 2015 [Statistical Yearbook of the Republic of Croatia 2015] (PDF). Statistical Yearbook of the Republic of Croatia (in Croatian and English). 47. Zagreb: Croatian Bureau of Statistics. pp. 49–50. ISSN 1333-3305. Retrieved 27 December 2015.
^ "Vransko jezero".