{"id":54861,"date":"2023-08-18T00:28:32","date_gmt":"2023-08-17T20:58:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/?p=54861"},"modified":"2026-11-07T22:15:16","modified_gmt":"2026-11-07T22:15:16","slug":"maharloo-lake","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/maharloo-lake\/","title":{"rendered":"Discover Maharloo Lake"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Maharlu<\/strong>, also spelled Maharloo Lake<\/strong>, is a seasonal salt lake southeast of Shiraz. Its appearance varies with water levels and the organisms in its salty water; a visit does not always reveal pink water.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The lake\u2019s footprint includes more than open water. A satellite study covering 1987 to 2022 distinguished water, exposed salt flats and bare ground. Those surfaces shift as the lake fills and dries, so one area figure cannot describe the water you will see on a particular visit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For a visit from Shiraz, the main draw is the contrast between coloured water, pale salt crusts and the surrounding dry landscape. Water and exposed ground can occupy very different areas from one season to another.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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A satellite image captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission features Maharloo<\/a> Lake, a seasonal salt lake in Iran, near the city of Shiraz. The city of Shiraz is visible to the northwest of the lake. Given the lake is seasonal, water levels will drop in the summer and rise again in the winter. In this image, captured in June 2019, the lake appears dark orange which means that the lake is very shallow but still contains some water. In comparison, Maharloo was completely dry in June 2021.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The European Space Agency places the lake around 27 kilometres southeast of Shiraz. This is a geographic reference, not a driving distance to every part of the shore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maharloo is also a breeding site for greater flamingos. Its value for birds depends on wetland conditions, and sightings vary. The wildlife section below describes observations from specific breeding seasons rather than a fixed calendar for visitors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Drought and changes to the water feeding the lake affect its habitat. A study of the 2023 and 2024 flamingo breeding seasons identified drought, upstream dams and agricultural irrigation among the pressures on southern Iran’s saline wetlands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Give birds room to feed and rest. Use binoculars from a distance, keep away from nesting areas and avoid approaching flocks for a closer photograph.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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