Lonar Lake And Sur Sarovar Accorded Ramsar Sites Tag

The Lonar Lake, the only crater lake of country in Maharashtra and Sur Sarovar, also known as Keetham Lake, in Agra, have been added to the list of recognised Ramsar sites.
Lonar Lake is an endorheic or closed basin, almost circular in shape, formed by a meteorite impact some 50,000 years ago, onto the basalt bedrock. It is high in salinity and alkalinity, as the lack of an outflow leads to a concentration of minerals as the lake water evaporates. It is the only crater lake in the country formed by the meteorite impact. Recently, the color of Lonar lake water had turned pink due to a large presence of the salt-loving "haloarchaea" microbes.
Sur Sarovar: Originally created to supply water to the city of Agra in the summer, the wetland soon became an important and rich ecosystem. The site's patchwork of habitat types provides refuge to resident and migratory birds, and more than 60 species of fish. The site is important for bird species that migrate on the Central Asian Flyway, with over 30,000 waterbirds known to visit the reservoir annually.
Recently, Kabartal in Bihar's Begusarai district and Asan Conservation Reserve in Dehradun were recognised as Ramsar Sites.
Now India has 41 wetlands, the highest in South Asia.