Taal Volcano

Taal Volcano, in the Philippines, has been called the smallest active volcano in the world. It is located about 70-km south of Manila on an island inside a lake called Taal Lake. What makes Taal Volcano more unique is the fact that the volcano itself has a lake of its own inside its crater which is called the "Crater Lake." One of the most picturesque places in the country, it contains Volcano Island.

 

Lake, southwestern Luzon, Philippines. It covers an area of 94 sq mi (244 sq km) and occupies a volcanic crater less than 10 ft (3 m) above sea level. Volcano Island (984 ft or 300 m), which rises from the lake and is also called Taal Volcano, contains another small crater (Yellow Lake). The volcano has erupted 25 times since 1572, most recently in 1970. Located within a national park, the lake is a major tourist attraction.

The lake and its environs is home to many species of flora and fauna a number of which are endemic to the lake like the " Tawilis " ( Sardinella tawilis ), the only fresh water sardine in the world and the Taal Lake Seasnake ( Hydrophis semperi ) or known to locals as '' Duhol '', the only freshwater sea snake in the world.