Salt Lake Retba in Senegal

Salt Lake Retba Senegal painted in an unusual color.



Microbiologist Bernard Oliver found out the reason for this strange color.



The lake is inhabited by micro-organism Dunaliella salina which is absorbing the sun highlights the color pigment strawberry - milky.



This organism or does not interfere with the local population to extract salt. Apart from these, other organic life Retba not - for algae, not to mention the fish, the salt concentration of such pernicious. It is almost one and a half times higher than in the Dead Sea - three hundred and eighty grams per liter



All the salt is mined by hand and transported to shore in conventional wooden boats. Salt loosen the bottom of the first, then, blind under water applied to the basket. From the basket, allowing excess water to drain, it is transferred into a boat.

Brine such concentration capable for about half an hour to corrode the skin to such an extent that the deposition of the poorly healing ulcers. So, before you get into the boat, miners rubbed with oil.



Just mined salt grayish color. Therefore, giving dry, women washed and sorted it to remove silt and sand ... From the small hills, each of which stuck nameplate holder, refined salt pour into the general pile, three-kilometer ridge stretching along the shore of Lake Rose



For pyatidesyatikilogrammovy bag wholesalers pay thirty cents. Pie holds approximately five hundred kilograms. It turns out that for a day of hard labor the worker receives only nine dollars. But by African standards it's good money. Otherwise, the lake Retba did not go to migrant workers from neighboring countries - Mali, Guinea, Gambia