Scutari, Lake

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Lake Scutari (skōō´tərē), Albanian Ligeni i Shkodrës, Serbo-Croatian Skadarsko Jezero, c.25 mi (40 km) long and from 4 to 8 mi (6.4–12.9 km) wide, SE Europe, on the Montenegro-Albania border. The largest lake of the Balkan Peninsula, it varies seasonally in size (c.150–200 sq mi/390–520 sq km) and depth and usually floods the surrounding area in the winter. Once an inlet of the Adriatic Sea, the lake is now separated from the sea by an alluvial isthmus. It is fed by the Morača River and drained by the Bunës southeastward to the Drin River. The lake is navigable by small steamers, and it abounds in fish.