Tonle Sap Great Lake in Cambodia, the largest
natural freshwater lake in southeast Asia, is situated
within the fl oodplain of the Mekong River. Water levels
in the lake vary by about 8 m between the dry season
minimum and the wet season maximum when waters
from the Mekong River back up the Tonle Sap River. The
lake is highly productive – the annual fi sh catch from the
Lake is estimated at between about 180,00–250,000
tonnes while the dai fi shery on Tonle Sap River annually
harvests about 12,000 tonnes of fi sh migrating from the
lake to the Mekong River early in the dry season. At least
149 species of fi sh are recorded from the lake and it provides habitat for 11 globally threatened and 6 near-threatened species of vertebrates including globally important
populations of Spot-billed Pelican, Greater Adjutant,
Bengal Florican, Darter, Grey-headed Fish Eagle and
Manchurian Reed Warbler. It also supports signifi cant