Lake Ira Lalaro

Ira Lalaro on the eastern plateau is the largest lake in Timor-Leste, a shallow body of water at 334 metres in a karst basin, a polje, that swells and shrinks dramatically with the season, from about 10 to 55 square kilometres; its outflow, the short Irasiquero river, vanishes into a sinkhole, the Mainina, and runs on underground to the coast. Some three hundred saltwater crocodiles live in it and are not hunted: the crocodile, lafaek, is central to Timorese origin stories. The Timor snake-necked turtle lives only in the lake and its river. Waterbirds use the margins and the country around is savanna and forest. The lake sits within Nino Konis Santana, the country's first national park, declared in 2007 and covering about 680 square kilometres.

What you'll find

• The seasonal lake - water that swells and shrinks with the rains.
• The Mainina sinkhole - where the outflowing river vanishes underground.
• The crocodiles - the population the lake is known for.
• The plateau setting - savanna and forest around the basin.

When to go

May to November is the dry season when the lake is at its smallest. The rains from December fill it considerably. Birds are heaviest as water recedes.

Things to know

Crocodiles live in the lake. The track in is rough and needs four wheel drive. There are no facilities.

Nearby

Lospalos is west, and Tutuala is east.

Key facts