Salt lakes in Australia's Westgate Park have turned pink due to a strange natural phenomenon. Reported by The New York Times.
“The salt lakes in Westgate Park have turned red due to the very high salt content of the water, high temperatures, sunlight and lack of rainfall. We advise you to avoid direct contact with water. The water is so salty that swimming will be unpleasant. And when the water on the body dries up, the salts crystallize quickly,”said biologist Mark Normann working in the park.
Algae growing in the salt crust at the bottom of the lake produces a red pigment known as beta-carotene during photosynthesis. The high salt content of the water activates this process. Experts noted that such a phenomenon can be observed when the weather becomes hot and dry. As water evaporates from a salt lake, its salt content increases eight or even ten times that of the ocean (for comparison, the salinity of the Dead Sea is only six times the salinity of the ocean). An extreme habitat is created in which only a few organisms can live. In the lakes of Westgate Park, the only living creature is unicellular algae. When the salt concentration is incredibly high, the algae start producing carotenoids. These pigments give the lake its pink color.
The lake is expected to return to normal color in the winter, starting in Australia in June. Then the temperature will drop and it will start to rain.