What causes lakes to change color?

Minerals are a common cause of changing water color, but lakes can also be affected by soil runoff, sediment, algae, and sometimes just our eyes. Over time, water can cause rocks to weather, breaking apart and dissolving the minerals released from the stones' surface.



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Dissolved organic matter, such as humus, peat or decaying plant matter, can produce a yellow or brown color. Some algae or dinoflagellates produce reddish or deep yellow waters. Water rich in phytoplankton and other algae usually appears green. Soil runoff produces a variety of yellow, red, brown and gray colors.

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The following are some of the most important basic factors that give unique character to each lake ecosystem. Climate: Temperature, wind, precipitation, and solar radiation all critically affect the lake's hydrologic and chemical characteristics, and indirectly affect the composition of the biological community.

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This MODIS image of blue water in the Caribbean Sea looks blue because the sunlight is scattered by the water molecules. Near the Bahama Islands, the lighter aqua colors are shallow water where the sunlight is reflecting off of the sand and reefs near the surface.

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A pink lake is a lake that has a red or pink colour. This is often caused by the presence of salt-tolerant algae that produces carotenoids, such as Dunaliella salina, usually in conjunction with specific bacteria and archaea, which may vary from lake to lake.

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In those “hypersaline” lakes, a “green” alga called Dunaliella salina turns them red. Dunaliella has a red pigment called B-carotene that masks the “green” of its chlorophyll.

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Blue water lakes contain low concentrations of algae and other substances, resulting in high clarity and a deep blue color. Water molecules absorb longer, visible wavelengths (e.g. red light, 600-700 nm) while shorter, blue wavelengths (< 500 nm) pass deeper into the water column.

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Lake color depends in part on what's in the water, but factors such as water depth and surrounding land use also matter. Compared with blue lakes, green or brown lakes have more algae, sediment and organic matter, says Xiao Yang, a hydrologist at Southern Methodist University in Dallas.

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Exuma, specifically Specifically, the bluest waters of the Caribbean is said to be at Tropic of Cancer Beach on the island of Exuma in the Bahamas. Its long sweeping sandbar is flanked by an eager shoreline expressing every gradient of blue. On a clear day at this Exuma beach, it looks like the sea flows into the sky.

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The Weddell Sea has been claimed by scientists to have the clearest waters of any ocean in the world. Described by a historian as “the most wretched and dismal region on earth”, due to the flash freezes that caught Shackleton's ship, its clarity is only belied by the sheer depth of the ocean below.

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Devil's Bay, Virgin Gorda, British Virgin Islands
  • Buck Island, U.S. Virgin Islands.
  • Grand Case Beach, St. Maarten.
  • Grand Case Beach, St. Maarten.
  • Honeymoon Beach in St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands.
  • Ffryes Beach, Antigua.
  • Blue Bay Beach, Curaçao.
  • Blue Bay Beach, Curaçao.
  • Grand Anse Beach, Grenada.


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Without question, the Island of Aruba has maintained its reputation for the best quality drinking water in all the Caribbean.

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Atlantic deep water is thought to spill into the Caribbean and contribute to the general deep water of its sea.

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Pollutants from residential, agricultural, and industrial areas reduce water quality. Land development decreases the amount of wildlife habitat. Fish populations have been declining in recent years as a result of these threats and increased fishing pressure.

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