Swan Lake is a lake located in the

Canadian province Canada has ten provinces and three territories that are sub-national administrative divisions under the jurisdiction of the Constitution of Canada, Canadian Constitution. In the 1867 Canadian Confederation, three provinces of British North Amer ...

Manitoba Manitoba is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population ...

. The lake, and several other features in the area, are named after the trumpeter swans found in the region.

Description

Swan Lake covers an area of , with an average depth of , giving a contained water volume of . There is a large

marsh In ecology, a marsh is a wetland that is dominated by herbaceous plants rather than by woody plants.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p More in genera ...

complex along the west shore of Swan Lake, near the

Swan Swans are birds of the genus ''Cygnus'' within the family Anatidae. The swans' closest relatives include the goose, geese and ducks. Swans are grouped with the closely related geese in the subfamily Anserinae where they form the tribe (biology) ...

and

Woody River Woody River is a river in the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan. The river's source is in the Porcupine Hills and Porcupine Provincial Forest of eastern Saskatchewan. From there it flows south through boreal forest and then east ...

s, which is a significant area for migrating birds in the region. The Swan Lake

drainage basin A drainage basin is an area of land in which all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows into another body of water, such as a lake or ocean. A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, ...

covers and extends into the province of

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada. It is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and to the south by the ...

. It is located between the

Duck Mountains Duck is the common name for numerous species of waterfowl in the family (biology), family Anatidae. Ducks are generally smaller and shorter-necked than swans and goose, geese, which are members of the same family. Divided among several subfam ...

and the

Porcupine Hills The Porcupine Hills refer to various groups of hills and uplands located in the prairie provinces of Canada, specifically the provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba. They are part of the Manitoba Escarpment, which was the shoreline of the anc ...

. Two major rivers discharge into Swan Lake from the basin, the Swan River and the Woody River. Other

topographic Topography is the study of the forms and features of land surfaces. The topography of an area may refer to the landforms and features themselves, or a description or depiction in maps. Topography is a field of geoscience and planetary scienc ...

features include Thunder Hill, the Swan River valley and plain, the two river's many tributaries, and Swan Lake and its surrounding

delta Delta commonly refers to: * Delta (letter) (Δ or δ), the fourth letter of the Greek alphabet * D (NATO phonetic alphabet: "Delta"), the fourth letter in the Latin alphabet * River delta, at a river mouth * Delta Air Lines, a major US carrier ...

wetland A wetland is a distinct semi-aquatic ecosystem whose groundcovers are flooded or saturated in water, either permanently, for years or decades, or only seasonally. Flooding results in oxygen-poor ( anoxic) processes taking place, especially ...

area. In addition to Swan Lake, there are approximately 30 smaller lakes in the basin; the major ones being, Lac La Course, Madge Lake,

Sarah Lake Sarah (born Sarai) is a biblical matriarch, prophet, and major figure in Abrahamic religions. While different Abrahamic faiths portray her differently, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam all depict her character similarly, as that of a pious woma ...

, Wellman Lake, Whitefish Lake, and Woody Lake. Land elevations vary from 2,600 and 2,300 feet above sea level in the Porcupine Hills and Duck Mountains respectively, to 851 feet above sea level at Swan Lake. The Porcupine Hills and Duck mountains are forested, as was the majority of the remainder of the basin originally. Explorer Thomas Simpson remarked when travelling through the area in 1837: Much of the forest has since been cleared and replaced with

agriculture Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...

. The area also supports significant forestry, hunting, sport-fishing, tourism, and outdoor recreational activities. Currently 42.7% of the basin is forested, 38.4% is devoted to agriculture, 15.5% is surface water, with the remaining 3.4% unclassified. Wetlands occupy 10% of the basin, mostly

bog A bog or bogland is a wetland that accumulates peat as a deposit of dead plant materials often mosses, typically sphagnum moss. It is one of the four main types of wetlands. Other names for bogs include mire, mosses, quagmire, and musk ...

s and shallow ponds located in the headwater areas of the Duck Mountains and Porcupine Hills, as well as the Swan Lake marsh complex. Average annual precipitation in the basin is 19 inches. Frost free period ranges from 87 to 110 days. The basin's average annual discharge is approximately . Of that, up to of water per day are free for domestic use without a water rights licence. Less than of annual water rights licences have been approved (2005). Total population living in the basin is approximately 14,000, the largest component consisting of approximately half of the total being rural residents living outside of major communities. The only communities on the lake itself are the main reserve of the

Wuskwi Sipihk First Nation Wuskwi Sipihk First Nation (Cree ᐘᐢᑿᐩ ᓰᐲᕽ waskway-sîpîhk, ''meaning: at the Birch River'') is a Swampy Cree First Nations band government whose reserve community is located northeast Birch River, Manitoba, along the western shores o ...

(Swan Lake 65C) and the northern part of the

Rural Municipality of Mountain In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and city, cities. Typical rural areas have a low population density and small settlements. Agriculture, Agricultural areas and areas with forestry ar ...

, both on the lake's western shores. The largest community in the basin is

Swan River, Manitoba Swan River is a town in Manitoba, Canada. It is surrounded by the Municipality of Swan Valley West in the Swan River Valley region. According to the 2021 Canadian Census, Swan River had a population of 4,049, making it Manitoba's 18th largest ...

, with a population of 4,032. The remaining communities with the exception of Minitonas, have fewer than 500 residents. These communities are: In Saskatchewan: * Arran *

Arabella ''Arabella'', Op. 79, is a lyric comedy, or opera, in three acts by Richard Strauss to a German libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal, their sixth and last operatic collaboration. Performance history It was first performed on 1 July 1933 at the D ...

* Danbury * Norquay * Pelly * Swan Plain * Whitebeech In Manitoba: * Benito * Bowsman *

Durban Durban ( ; , from meaning "bay, lagoon") is the third-most populous city in South Africa, after Johannesburg and Cape Town, and the largest city in the Provinces of South Africa, province of KwaZulu-Natal. Situated on the east coast of South ...

* Kamsack Beach * Key Reserve * Kenville * Lenswood * Minitonas * Novra * Renwer * Swan Lake Reserve

References

{{Authority control Lakes of Manitoba

Description

See also

References