B. Wemyss Photographs

Mono Lake is a centuries old lake sitting high in the California Sierra Nevada Mountains. The lake is a closed basin where dissolved salts produce a natural alkalinity and a salt content more than twice that of ocean water.

Boasting an unusual Ph of 9.8, the lake is too alkaline for fish. Brine shrimp are one of the few species which thrive in these waters. The shrimp, smaller than a human thumbnail, are perfect food for migratory birds. Millions of birds pass by each year on trips north or south, and stop at Mono to consume the shrimp. California’s Department of Fish and Game has tried - without success - to introduce fish stock to the lake.



The lake’s tufa towers are produced when calcium rich freshwater mixes with the lake’s natural carbonate water. The resulting vertical towers rise above thelake’s surface.


Sources:
California State Parks
Mono Lake Chemistry

Click on thumbnail under image for the high resolution image.

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