Wilpattu National Park Villu hydrochemistry: dissolved calcium carbonate buffering and salinity?
Why do water chemistry parameters differ between fresh villus like Kumbuk Wila and saline basins like Kokkare Villu within the same sand plain?
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5 Answers from travellers
The diverse water chemistry across Wilpattu’s villu basins is governed by subterranean karst hydrogeology and marine evaporation. Freshwater villus (such as Kumbuk Wila and Mahapatana) rest on thick, unconfined sand aquifers that store seasonal monsoon rainfall, maintaining low total dissolved solids (TDS < 300 mg/L) and neutral pH (6.8-7.4) buffered by dissolved calcium bicarbonate from underlying Miocene limestone. Conversely, hypersaline basins (like Kokkare Villu) have shallow impervious clay sub-layers that cut off freshwater aquifer recharge; centuries of high evaporation have concentrated sodium, chloride, and sulfate ions, creating saline lakes.
The high salinity in Kokkare Villu supports distinct benthic halophytic algae that turn the lake margins white with salt crusts during dry August droughts.
Migratory shorebirds, including Black-winged Stilts and Little Stints, congregate at saline villus to feed on abundant brine flies and larval crustaceans.
Mammals (leopards, elephants, and deer) drink exclusively at freshwater villus, avoiding saline basins during the dry season.
Kumbuk Wila features an elevated wooden picnic pavilion where safari visitors can disembark to observe waterbirds under giant Kumbuk trees.
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