Most of the Bahamian lakes are linear or crescentic in shape, and this is easily identifies
their origin in depressions between ridges. Inland lakes are shallow, usually only a few
feet deep, and rarely more than three to four meters deep. They typically have swampy
islands of mangroves within them and along the perimeters. Gradually, the swamps
expand and as a result the lakes decrease in size, so that all the lakes eventually mature
into swamps. All the major Bahamian islands have such marshy areas that were once
lakes and which usually flood when the water table rises in the rainy season. Inland lakes
are not sources of potable water in The Bahamas.
Geologically two types of lakes predominate throughout The Bahamas, ridgeland and
rockland lakes. Ridgeland lakes will form whenever the land between two ridges falls
below the level of the water table. Lakes in The Bahamas are usually small in size. A
second type of lake is a shallow, saucer-like depression in the rockland. Presumably
rockland lakes were formed while the rockland was still below sea-level, and in some
cases tidal currents may have been responsible. In general, rockland lakes are less
common throughout The Bahamas than ridgeland lakes.
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