Greifensee (lake)

Greifensee is a natural lake in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland.

Geography

Greifensee is located to the east of the city of Zürich, separated by the Pfannenstiel from Lake Zurich. As the second largest lake in the canton of Zürich, it is about long and at the widest point, with a maximum depth of. The Aabach (Greifensee) is the main supplying river, while its outlet is the Glatt. On its southeastern end the Mönchaltorfer Aa enters the Greifensee.

The lakeside is under UNESCO protection, and buildings are not allowed, resulting in reed bed and a rich fauna and flora: Around 400 plant species in the lake and 19 species in its tributaries. The nature reserves are important for the birds breeding there including more than 120 migratory species.

The lake was known as Glattsee in the medieval times Greifensee was at first the name of the fort built by the counts of Rapperswil in the 12th century, recorded as the name of the bailiwick in 1260.
This was adopted as the name of the lake by the 16th century.
Located on the banks, the Prehistoric pile dwelling settlement Greifensee–Storen–Wildsberg is part of the 56 Swiss sites of the UNESCO World Heritage Site Prehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps, and the settlement is also listed in the Swiss inventory of cultural property of national and regional significance as a Class object. Because the lake has grown in size over time, the original piles are now around to under the water level of.