Dongting Hu

Dongting Hu, also Tung-t'ing Hu, large lake, southeastern China, in northern Hunan Province, on the Dongting Plain, in the valley of the Yangtze River. The lake covers 3,700 sq km (1,430 sq mi). It becomes a natural reservoir during the rainy season, when the flooding Yangtze increases the size of the lake significantly. The Xiang (Hsiang) and Zi (Tzu) rivers flow into the lake from the south and the Yuan (Yüan) and Li from the west. Dongting Hu is joined to the Yangtze by three canals. The surrounding plain is one of the chief rice-producing areas of China.