Brown Lake, Lake on North Stradbroke Island, Queensland, Australia
Brown Lake, also known as Bummiera, is a freshwater lake on North Stradbroke Island in Queensland, Australia. Its water has a brown tint caused by tannins released from melaleuca and tea trees that grow along its shores.
Brown Lake is a perched lake, formed when rainwater collected above a hardened layer of sand and organic material known as coffee rock. The surrounding dunes took shape during the Pleistocene, when lower sea levels and strong winds built up the sandy terrain over thousands of years.
Brown Lake, also known as Bummiera, sits on land that belongs to the Quandamooka People, the traditional owners of Minjerribah (North Stradbroke Island). Women of the community hold a special role in caring for the lake and performing ceremonies there, connected to the story of the Rainbow Serpent that is said to inhabit the water.
The lake sits inside Naree Budjong Djara National Park and can be reached by regular car along Brown Lake Drive, a road that does not require a four-wheel drive. Picnic tables, wood-fired barbecues, and public toilets are available on site, and arriving early in the day tends to make for a quieter visit.
The lake is home to Hypseleotris galii, a native fish species that has adapted to survive in the acidic, low-nutrient water. Efforts are also underway to remove Gambusia fish, an introduced species brought in to control mosquitoes that now threatens native wildlife in the lake.
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