Editing Great Bitter Lake

{{Short description|Saltwater lake that is part of the Suez Canal in Egypt}}
{{For|other places called Bitter Lake|Bitter Lake (disambiguation){{!}}Bitter Lake}}
{{Infobox body of water
| name               = Great Bitter Lake
| native_name        ={{native name|ar|البحيرة المرة الكبرى}}
| image              = Great Bitter Lake, Egypt.jpg
| caption            = The Great Bitter Lake from low orbit (north is left)
| image_bathymetry   = 
| caption_bathymetry = 
| location           = [[Suez Canal]]
| coords             = {{Coord|30|19|21|N|32|22|57|E|region:EG_type:waterbody|display=inline,title}}
| lake_type          = [[salt lake]]
| inflow             = Suez Canal
| outflow            = Suez Canal
| catchment          = 
| basin_countries    = Egypt
| date-flooded       = {{Start date|1869}}
| length             = {{cvt|24|km|mi}}
| width              = {{cvt|13|km|mi}}
| area               = {{cvt|194|km2|mi2}}
| depth              = {{cvt|18|m|ft}}
| max-depth          = {{cvt|28|m|ft}}
| salinity           = 4.1%
| volume             = 
| residence_time     = 
| shore              = 
| elevation          = {{cvt|0|m|ft}}
| islands            = 
| cities             = [[Fayed, Egypt|Fayed]]<br>Abou Sultan
| pushpin_map        = Egypt
| pushpin_label_position = 
| pushpin_map_alt    = Location of Great Bitter Lake in Egypt.
| pushpin_map_caption = <!--   Below       -->
| website            = 
| reference          = 
}}

The '''Great Bitter Lake''' ({{langx|ar|البحيرة المرة الكبرى}}; [[Arabic transliteration|transliterated]]: ''al-Buḥayrah al-Murra al-Kubrā'') is a large [[saltwater lake]] in [[Egypt]] which is part of the  [[Suez Canal]].  Before the canal was built in 1869, the Great Bitter Lake was a dry salt valley or basin.<ref name="PassingLane" /><ref name="Madl 1999">
Madl, Pierre (1999). [http://biophysics.sbg.ac.at/lm/lesseps.htm Essay about the phenomenon of Lessepsian Migration] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160731063505/http://biophysics.sbg.ac.at/lm/lesseps.htm|date=2016-07-31}}, Colloquial Meeting of Marine Biology I, Salzburg, April 1999 (revised in Nov. 2001).
</ref> References are made to the Great Bitter Lake in the ancient [[Pyramid Texts]].<ref name="PyramidTexts">{{cite book |last1=Jones |first1=Greg |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ewlWDQAAQBAJ&q=Bitter+Lake&pg=PT41 |title=Waters of Death and Creation: Images of Water in the Egyptian Pyramid Texts |date=Apr 28, 2014 |publisher=BookBaby |isbn=9781483526362 |access-date=18 November 2016 }}{{Dead link|date=October 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> 

The canal connects the Great Bitter Lake to the [[Mediterranean Sea]] and the [[Red Sea]]. The canal also connects it to the Small Bitter Lake ({{langx|ar|البحيرة المرة الصغرى}}; transliterated: al-Buhayrah al-Murra as-Sughra). 

Ships traveling through the Suez Canal use the Great Bitter Lake as a "passing lane", where they can pass other ships or turn around.<ref name="PassingLane">{{cite web |title=Great Bitter Lake, Egypt (Oct. 26, 2009) |url=http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=40884 |website=Earth Observatory NASA |date=26 October 2009 |access-date=18 November 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161119182056/http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=40884 |archive-date=19 November 2016}}</ref>

== Etymology ==
The Modern [[English language|English]] and [[Arabic]] names are translations of the [[Greek language|Greek]] name ({{Langx|grc|Πικραὶ Λίμναι|lit=bitter lakes}}). It was also known in Latin as "dead lake" ({{Langx|la|Lacus mori}}).<ref>{{Cite web |title=TM Places |url=https://www.trismegistos.org/geo/detail.php?tm=5002 |access-date=2023-04-20 |website=www.trismegistos.org}}</ref> The [[Ancient Egypt|ancient Egyptian]] name for the Bitter Lakes region was ''km-wr'', lit. "great black one".

==Salinity==
The [[salinity]] of the lake varies along its depth and is highest at the bottom where the water is in contact with the preexisting salt deposit, which has been consistently diminishing due to dissolution –thereby steadily increasing the depth of the lake– since the canal started operation in 1869.<ref name=":3">{{Cite journal |last=Wüst |first=Georg |date=1935 |title=Salinity and Water Movement in the Suez Canal |url=https://journals.lib.unb.ca/index.php/ihr/article/download/27997/1882520753 |journal=International Hydrographic Review |volume=XII |issue=1 |pages=137–141}}</ref> 

Salinity is subject to seasonal variation as a result of yearly evaporation cycles.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":4">{{Cite journal |last1=El-Serehy |first1=Hamed A. |last2=Abdallah |first2=Hala S. |last3=Al-Misned |first3=Fahad A. |last4=Irshad |first4=Rizwan |last5=Al-Farraj |first5=Saleh A. |last6=Almalki |first6=Esam S. |date=2018 |title=Aquatic ecosystem health and trophic status classification of the Bitter Lakes along the main connecting link between the Red Sea and the Mediterranean |journal=Saudi Journal of Biological Sciences |language=en |volume=25 |issue=2 |pages=204–212 |doi=10.1016/j.sjbs.2017.12.004 |pmid=29472766 |pmc=5816010 |issn=1319-562X|doi-access=free}}</ref> In the early 20th century, the minimum and maximum values were measured as 4.5% and 5.4%, respectively, with an average salinity of 4.9% (''i.e.'' 49&nbsp;g of salt per kg of lake water).<ref name=":3" />

When the Suez Canal was closed for eight years, beginning during the [[Six-Day War]] in 1967, the salinity of the lake increased substantially.<ref name="Salinity" /> In 2017 the minimum and maximum values measured at 4.1% and 4.5%, with an average close to 4.1%.<ref name=":4" />

The salinity of the lake also depends on how much [[seawater]] flows into it from the Red and the Mediterranean Seas.<ref name="Salinity">{{cite book |last1=El Baz |first1=Farouk |title=The Geology of Egypt: An Annotated Bibliography |date=January 1, 1984 |publisher=Brill Archive |isbn=9789004070196 |page=516 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FM4UAAAAIAAJ&q=Great+Bitter+Lake&pg=PA516 |access-date=18 November 2016}}</ref> Even when the canal is open, in certain places the Great Bitter Lake can have a salinity level "more than twice" the level of the sea. While this makes it difficult for plant life to exist there, many species (of [[Crab|crabs]], for example) migrate from the Red Sea through the area.<ref name="Ecology">{{cite book |last1=Elton |first1=Charles S. |title=The Ecology of Invasions by Animals and Plants |date=June 15, 2000 |publisher=University of Chicago Press |isbn=9780226206387 |page=96 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4DBDiFeavyUC&q=Great+Bitter+Lake&pg=PA95 |access-date=18 November 2016}}</ref>

As the canal has no [[sea lock|locks]], seawater flows freely into the lake from the Mediterranean and the Red Sea. In general, north of the lakes, the current reverses seasonally, being north-going in winter and south-going in summer.<ref name="NorthSouthCurrents">{{cite book |last1=Sears |first1=M. |last2=Merriman |first2=D. |title=Oceanography: The Past |date=December 6, 2012 |publisher=Springer Science & Business Media |isbn=9781461380900 |page=301 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jUrTBwAAQBAJ&q=Bitter+Lake&pg=PA302 |access-date=18 November 2016}}</ref> South of the lakes, the current is [[Tide|tidal]], reversing with the tides in the Red Sea.<ref name="Red Sea Pilot">
{{cite book |title=The Red Sea Pilot |publisher=Imray Laurie Norie & Wilson |year=1995 |pages=266}}
</ref>
Fish and crabs can [[Migration (ecology)|migrate]], generally in a northerly direction, through the canal and lakes in what is known as a [[Lessepsian migration]], as some Red Sea species have come to [[Colonisation (biology)|colonize]] the eastern Mediterranean.<ref name="Madl 1999" /><ref name="Ecology" />

== Molluscan species ==
=== Description and brief history ===
Following the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869, the area has witnessed massive marine migrations from the canal to the Mediterranean. Anti-Lessepsian migrations, species migrating from the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea, were rare.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last1=Hoffman |first1=Leon |last2=Dekker |first2=Henk |year=2006 |title=Marine Mollusca collected during a journey to the Great Bitter Lake (Suez Canal) and Nile Delta |journal=Gloria Mairs |volume=45 |issue=1–2 |pages=30–45}}</ref> The first recorded molluscan anti-Lessepsian migrant was ''[[Cerastoderma glaucum]]'' by Fisher (1870).

The [[Hypersaline lake|hypersaline]] state of the water in the lake was found to make [[fauna]]l and [[flora]]l growth impossible there. Nevertheless, some [[seaweed]] was found on the eastern side of the lake, giving a slight hope of prolific [[biotope]].<ref name=":0" />

In 1998, Hoenselaar and Dekker studied the material collected in 1950 by Beets (1953), in which they discovered a total of 44 [[Gastropoda|gastropods]] and 47 [[Bivalvia|bivalve]] species in the lake. Of these species, they concluded that only three gastropods and five bivalves were of Mediterranean origin. The rest were all originally from the Red Sea. This imbalance of origin is due to the water currents, which mainly flow toward the Mediterranean Sea, generally hampering migration from the Mediterranean Sea toward the Red Sea.<ref name=":0" /> Still, in the years since 1950,  more molluscan populations likely have migrated.

=== Gastropods and bivalves of the Great Bitter Lake ===
Thirty-one gastropods <ref>{{Cite web |url=https://ucmp.berkeley.edu/taxa/inverts/mollusca/gastropoda.php |title=The Gastropoda}}</ref> (table 1) and 19  bivalve species<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://ucmp.berkeley.edu/taxa/inverts/mollusca/bivalvia.php |title=The Bivalvia}}</ref> (table 2) are documented in the lake.<ref name=":0" /> The gastropods ''[[Pusulina radiata]]'' and ''[[Tritia neritea|Cyclope neritea]]'', and the bivalves ''[[Cerastoderma glaucum|Cerastoderma glauca]]'' and ''[[Tapes decussatus]]'' are the only anti-Lessepsian species that are originally from the Mediterranean Sea. 

Between spring 2016 and winter 2017, 41 different species of four phyla were found, among which were 12 molluscan species. Of all phyla, molluscs recorded the highest density, with a record of 90,632 individuals per m<sup>2</sup>, due to the dominant presence of ''[[Modiolus oriculatus]]'' (75,052 individuals per m<sup>2</sup> annually).<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal |last1=Belal |first1=Aisha Ahmad M. |last2=Dar |first2=Mahmoud A. |year=2020 |title=Distribution and biodiversity of macro-benthic fauna in relation to some heavy metals at the Great Bitter Lakes, Suez Canal, Egypt |journal=The Egyptian Journal of Aquatic Research |volume=46 |issue=1 |pages=49–56 |doi=10.1016/j.ejar.2020.02.005|doi-access=free}}</ref>

=== Molluscs and heavy metals ===
The Great Bitter Lake’s bottom soil is mainly composed of mud and sand (mostly [[carbonate]]),<ref name=":0" /> which can be related to the extensive and continuous drilling activities happening in the Suez Canal for its expansion.<ref name=":1" /> The soil is bleak due to the stagnant nature of the lake combined with the accumulation of [[Pollutant|pollutants]] coming from the naval traffic that occurs inside the lake. The motionless state of the lake, though, transforms the lake sediments into a depository of [[heavy metals]].<ref name=":2">{{Cite journal |last1=Dar |first1=Mahmoud A. |last2=Belal |first2=Aisha A. |last3=Madkour |first3=Amany G. |date=December 2018 |title=The differential abilities of some molluscs to accumulate heavy metals within their shells in the Timsah and the Great Bitter lakes, Suez Canal, Egypt |journal=The Egyptian Journal of Aquatic Research |volume=44 |issue=4 |pages=291–298 |doi=10.1016/j.ejar.2018.11.008 |issn=1687-4285|doi-access=free}}</ref> Several factors determine the availability of heavy metals at the bottom of the lake. In the recent years, a major part of heavy-metal pollution has originated from [[overpopulation]], [[Industrialisation|industrialization]], sewage, [[Landfill|dumpsites]], crude-oil spills, [[Agrochemical|agricultural chemicals]], and more.<ref name=":2" /> Once these heavy metals integrate with the sediments composing the lake's soil, they serve as a guide to local pollution, answering the questions of where, how, and when did the polluting event occur. Heavy metals are spread out [[Heterogeneous System Architecture|heterogeneously]] over the lake’s area. The different concentrations of these metals were in 11 areas of the lake; six were onshore at 2–3&nbsp;m deep, and five were offshore at a depth of 12–15&nbsp;m.<ref name=":1" />

Molluscs are bioindicators of heavy-metal pollution in an aquatic body due to their ability to absorb heavy metals. The distribution of heavy metals is widespread all over the lake at different depths in both water and sediments.<ref name=":1" /> Each station records a certain level for the heavy metals available in its periphery. Each type of chemical reaches its highest (or lowest) concentration somewhere in the lake and each at different spots. On one side, the distribution shows that the pollution is not only concentrated in one area of the lake, but also that it is vastly spread out; on the other side, it shows that molluscan species inside the lake are not all exposed to the same quantity nor type of heavy metals. Consequently, molluscan species accumulate different types of heavy metals depending on their location in the lake, which can be used to estimate the various toxicity rates in the water of the lake. 

==Quincy agreement==
{{main|Quincy Agreement}}
On 14 February 1945, Great Bitter Lake was the site of the [[USS Quincy (CA-71)#The Quincy Agreement|Quincy agreement]]. [[President of the United States|U.S. President]] [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]], having flown directly from the [[Yalta Conference]], met on board the heavy cruiser USS ''Quincy'' with [[Saudi Arabia]]'s [[Ibn Saud|King Abdulaziz Ibn Saud]].<ref name=susris>{{cite web |title=President Roosevelt and King Abdulaziz |url=http://susris.com/2005/03/17/president-roosevelt-and-king-abdulaziz-the-meeting-at-great-bitter-lake-a-conversation-with-rachel-bronson/ |work=SUSRIS |access-date=2014-11-10 |date=17 March 2005 |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141111061751/http://susris.com/2005/03/17/president-roosevelt-and-king-abdulaziz-the-meeting-at-great-bitter-lake-a-conversation-with-rachel-bronson/ |archive-date=11 November 2014}}</ref><!-- And? What agreement did they reach? -->
President Roosevelt's interpreter was [[U.S. Marine Corps]] [[William A. Eddy|Colonel Bill Eddy]], who recorded the men's conversation in his book ''FDR Meets Ibn Saud''. The meeting is the subject of a [[BBC]] documentary by [[Adam Curtis]], entitled ''[[Bitter Lake (film)|Bitter Lake]]'' (2015).<ref name="Film">{{cite news |last1=MacInnes |first1=Paul |title=Adam Curtis: 'I try to make the complexity and chaos intelligible' |url=https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2015/jan/24/adam-curtis-bitter-lake |access-date=18 November 2016 |agency=The Guardian |date=January 24, 2015 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161022223338/https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2015/jan/24/adam-curtis-bitter-lake |archive-date=22 October 2016}}</ref>

==Yellow Fleet==
{{main|Yellow Fleet}}
During the Six-Day War in 1967, the canal was closed. Egypt kept it closed until 1975, trapping 15 ships in the lake. These ships became known as the "[[Yellow Fleet]]", because of the desert sands that soon covered their decks.<ref>{{cite web |last=Blair |first=Jonathon |date=June 1975 |url=http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/1975/06/suez-canal/blair-photography |title=New Life for the Troubled Suez Canal |publisher=[[National Geographic (magazine)|National Geographic]] |access-date=August 23, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120420065852/http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/1975/06/suez-canal/blair-photography |archive-date=April 20, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Pearson |first1=John |last2=Anderson |first2=Ken |date=May 1975 |title=A 'new' Suez Canal shapes up for 1980s |journal=[[Popular Mechanics]] |volume=143 |issue=5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=auIDAAAAMBAJ |access-date=August 23, 2011 |publisher=[[Hearst Corporation|Hearst Magazines]] |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140706202422/http://books.google.com/books?id=auIDAAAAMBAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_atb |archive-date=July 6, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bluefunnel.myzen.co.uk/bluefunnel/melampus/melampus.htm |title=Melampus in Suez (the tale of a soldier on the ''MS Melampus'') |author=Ian Russel |work=The Blue Funnel Line 1866 - 1986 |access-date=2011-04-30 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101113060437/http://www.bluefunnel.myzen.co.uk/bluefunnel/melampus/melampus.htm |archive-date=2010-11-13}}</ref> The crews of the ships eventually organized, shared resources, and later set up their own post office and stamp. Two German-flagged ships eventually sailed out of the canal on their own power. Stranded cargo included various perishables (such as eggs and fruit), T-shirts, and a load of toys destined for [[F. W. Woolworth Company|Woolworth's]].<ref name="AbandonedShips">{{cite news |last1=Gregor |first1=Karen |title=The Yellow Fleet |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00vrwrt |access-date=18 November 2016 |agency=BBC Radio |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161130152327/http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00vrwrt |archive-date=30 November 2016}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
* {{commons category-inline}}

{{Suez Canal}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Lakes of Egypt]]
[[Category:Suez Canal]]
[[Category:Saline lakes of Africa]]