3 Largest Lakes in the World

There are hundreds of lakes around the world that hold claim to the title of the largest lake of some kind – either by volume, surface area, or a plethora of other defining qualifiers and caveats. For the purpose of this article, we’ve listed the largest lakes in the world when measured by total surface area, from the smallest to the largest. From the Great Slave Lake in North America to the Caspian Sea that spreads across the continents of Europe and Asia, these are some of the biggest water sources on Earth.

Great Slave Lake (27,000 km2)

Great Slave Lake is the second largest lake in the Northwest Territories of Canada, overtaken only by Great Bear Lake. Reaching a staggering depth of over 600 meters, it is the deepest lake in North America. Stretching nearly 300 miles long and over 100 miles wide, it is the tenth-largest lake on Earth.

Various towns sit on the edge of the lake; these include Yellowknife, Fort Resolution, and Hay River, to name a few. Due to its location south of the Arctic Circle, the lake freezes over in winter and maintains a temperature so cold that the residents are able to carve an ice road through it, creating a shortcut between Yellowknife and Dettah.

The rest of the year, the lake is a hotspot for sailors and anglers, who enjoy trying their luck fishing for pike and trout in the lake or Arctic grayling in its tributaries.

Lake Malawi (29,500 km2)

Spreading across Tanzania, Malawi, and Mozambique along Africa’s East Coast, Lake Malawi – also known as Lake Nyasa – is the third largest lake on the African continent. One of the African Great Lakes, sprawling Lake Malawi has many claims to fame.

It is the fourth largest lake on Earth by volume, the ninth-largest by area, and the second deepest lake in Africa. It is not simply its sheer size that makes Lake Malawi special, but also the life it sustains.

Lake Malawi is home to more fish species than any other known lake – specifically, hundreds of cichlid fish. While fishing is permitted in some places, various sections have been designated as marine reserves to protect these creatures.

Great Bear Lake (31,000 km2)

Located in Canada’s Northwest Territories on the Arctic Circle, the Great Bear Lake is the eighth largest lake on the planet. It is also the largest freshwater lake located entirely within the borders of Canada, and the fourth largest in North America.

Plunging over 440 meters at its deepest point, the lake is fringed by boreal forest and tundra and known for its crystal-clear water. While the lake is home to speckled trout and several other species of marine life, it has the fewest variety of fish species of all of Canada’s Great Lakes. Source : touropia