The Saline Lakes of Saskatchewan II. Locale,Hydrography and other Physical Aspects

The geology and physiography, climate, soils and vegetation of the saline lakes region of southern Saskatchewan are briefly reviewed. The location and morphometry of 60 saline lakes was determined. Some of them are large (307 km²) but mean depths do not exceed 10 m and many are very shallow. Light penetration varied considerably from very turbid shallow lakes to Redberry Lake where the 1% light level was below 16.5 m. Light extinction coefficients for the entire water column of deeper lakes (7) varied from 0.256 to 2.558. Shallow lakes failed to stratify thermally but a dozen deeper lakes stratified for at least several months. Higher salinity tends to prolong stratification. Thermal stratification augmented chemical stratification in two meromictic lakes. Maximum temperature up to 30 °C in very saline shallow waters was recorded while temperatures as low as-3 °C occurred under the ice. Freezing was delayed and thawing accelerated in more saline lakes. Annual heat budgets varied from 3350 to 13,900 g cal cm-² in seven lakes. Oxygen concentration was reduced below thermoclines and was virtually absent below the ice in very shallow lakes and, at times, in a very productive lake.