BAIKAL

Baikal is the deepest freshwater lake in the world. Is is located in the centre of Asian continent, on the South of Eastern Siberia in latitude 55 °46, 4 – 51° 27,5 North. East and North parts of the lake are officially belonged to Buryatia Republic, the West one with Olkhon Island forms a part of Irkutsk region.

• Baikal Parameters:
• a length – 636 km
• a width:
• the greatest – 79,5 km
• the least – 27 km
• coastline length – 2000 km
• maximum depth – 1637 km (at the East coast of Olkhon Island)

The Baikal Colux consists of three hollows (the north, the middle, the south), detached with submarine hills –rapids (the Selenginsky separates the south hollow from the middle, Academic submarin range rising over waterline on 210 m as the Ushkany Islands serves as boundary between north and middle hollows). The smallest hollow is the north, its maximum depth is 1419 m; the deepest is the middle, its depth is 1637 m.

Water mirror square is 31500 (the 8th place in the world).

Catchment area square is 588000 km.

Water Mass Volume is 23000 mі. It's 92 as many as in the Azov Sea, 4,3 as many as in the White Sea. And the same water mass is in the 5 Great American Lakes. It's 1/5 of world freshwater reserve.

The height above the Baltic Sea is 456 m. The Federal law of the RF (from 26.03.2001) prescribes "to set maximum and minimum Baikal water lines, accordingly 457,0 m and 456,0 m, in the usage of its water resourses at industry and other activities".

Under data of Cherkesky (1886), near 336 rivers and streams flow into Baikal. In 1964 V.M.Boyarsky made a calculation of Baikal rivers according to topography maps. Under his data, approximately 544 waterways (permanent and temporal) flow into Baikal, as 230 from the Western coast (40%) and 324 from the Eastern coast (60%).

Baikal is edged with mountains. It's mountain relief of Baikal region that determines coast traits. Whole of Baikal coastlines are separated with bays and capes. In 1886Yan Chersky numbered 174 capes, 101 of which are located on the North-Western coast, while 73 belong to the South-Eastern coastline.

Within capes there are bays, the biggest ones are Barguzinsky – 727 kmІ (it's the deepest – 1284 m), Chivyrkujsky – 270 kmІ, Proval – 197 kmІ, Posolsky – 35 kmІ, Cherkalov – 20 kmІ, Mukhor – 16 km.

The characteristic of Baikal water area is sorys (shallow bays) existence.

South and Middle parts of Western coast right up to the Olkhonskye Vorota Strait, as well as, Eastern coast of Olkhon Island are mainly formed with sharp, often rock coasts which are divided by wide river piains and small streams. Coasts are covered with stones, the exception is Peschanaya bay and near located bays. There is the most famous tourist base "Peschanaya Bay".

The Olhonskie Vorota Strait leads to the Small Sea, big isolated area between Western Baikal coast and biggest island – Olkhon. The Small Sea is one of unique Baikal regions thanks to climate conditions. Comfortable for yacht parking bays on the South, rare rains, rather warm water, rock-taiga and steep landscapes, as well as, accessibility make this place very popular but vulnerable.

Olkhon islands are integral part of Baikal. Under latest data, there are near 35 rather stable islands.

O.K. Elina
Head of Nature Department of the Irkutsk Regional StudiesMuseum

A FLORA

A flora is the set of families, genuses, species of plants formed in the evolution process on every continent. It's impossible to find two similar flora segments on the Earth. The flora diversity can be explained by climate, soil and rock variety, geological past, geographical isolation of one or another region, and, as a result, flora is full of endemic plants.

Territory antiquity and nature conditions variety have been favourable for rich flora forming in Baikal region. Baikal flora is represented with a lot of unique species. For example, subalpian zone of Khamar-Daban mountainsides is the only place where Swertia Baicalensis from gorechavkovye family is growing. Hedysazum Zundukiir from bean family can be found only on the small part of western coast between Otto-Khushun and Zama Capes.

South-Western Baikal region (also called as Khamar-Daban region) has an original vegetation and, first of all, an abundance of oak-hornbeam forests. On the North of Khamar-Daban mountainside there is vegetation distribution according to the height. Thus, on Baikal terrace there are fir-cedar and silver-cedar forests, as well as, bogs, and what's more the cedar predominates on sharp rock areas, while the silver-fir is widespread in the canyons. On the costal zone there are cedar elfin wood, goldish draft rose bay, blue philodotse, kashkara. On the Khamar-Daban mountainside turned to Baikal, rains are very often, that's why forests grow from the mere coast, and consist of the cedar, silver-fir, and,therefore, are full of red berry and wild rosemary.

Blue fir is growing on the South of Baikal Coast not far from Arshan Health Resort on terraces near river-mouthes. It differs from common Siberian fir by its blue needles which is covered by dove-coloured wax taint. The origin of this Siberian fir variety with high decorative value, is a mystery.

The unique fir forest on the Olkhon Island is another botanic puzzle of Baikal. These unusual plants are witnesses of aicient times when a climate and a territory relief were much different.

At the middle part of Western Baikal Coast, there has been tundra-steep as a relict from Ice Period. Steep and tundra plant communities are located especially on limestone spurs of Coastal mountainside between Otto-Khushun and Zama Capes. These relicts are "alive fossils". They are the last witnesses of plant cover evolution, and exist nowadays.

A specific flora of the Ushkanii Islands consists of 280 species, belonged to 164 genuses and 53 families. There are grasses, compositae, rosaceae, ranunculi, umbellate , sedge and willow plants. Deciduous and pine forests are predominated in plant cover. Trees stems of different ages are closed, and have good and satisfied resumption.

Trees of the North part of Paschanaya Bay, not far from Big Belltower Cape, are called "stitled" and consist of 5 larchs kinds and 1 pine-tree kind. On Baikal coast there are amazing picturesque nature landscapes, rich vegetation, especially coniferous, containing different fruiter and berry plants. Mountainsides are covered with pine and deciduous-pine forests, with red berry, wild rosemary and herbal diversity. On the watersheds there are silver fir - ceder forests full of bilberry. The whole of unique nature of these places demands careful and considerate treatment.

N.P. Novikova
Research officer of funds department

BAIKAL FAUNA

 Baikal is the lake-champion. It is the deepest and oldest lake in the world. The most plants and animals species are there. Under data represented by famous expert in the sphere of Baikal fauna - Timoshkin O.A. - in Baikal there are mere 2,500 species and subspecies but every year biologists find dozens of new species. Even in winter, when the lake is covered by meter-ice layer, you can see diversity and abundance of Baikal fauna in water samples as seaweed "winter crop" provides existance of all complex food relations.

 The smallest animals of Baikal are protozoa. This is the group of unicellular organisms from 0,003 to 0,1 mm, which feed consists of bacteriumia and seaweed, while several species, for example,infusoria, use other kinds of protozoa for food. The group of multicellular invertebrate animals is represented in Baikal with the most species diversity, among which are own"celebrities" The endemic Baikal ephishura is, probably, the most famous among invertebrate of Baikal. These are small, from 1 to 1,5 mm, crustacea species, also called "veslonogie rachky". Their habitat is practically all parts of open Baikal. Thanks to their filter apparatus – thick meshes of setas and hairs on the end of mouth apparatus-epishura is the most effective biological cleaner of Baikal water. The epishura is also the feed of omul. Other Baikal crustacea species are akantogammaruses, which are much bigger in comparison with epishura. Their body size is several sentimeters in length. Their shell is armed with sharp thorns, prettifying them. Akantogammarus habitat is lake bottom right to the depth of several hundreds meters. On stone Baikal ground there are the most exotic inhabitants of Baikal – poriphers and funguses. They are motionless colonies of small invertebrate, lodging with microseaweed, thanks to which they are colored in different tinges of green tone. Colony shape depends species affiliation (there are 16 species of funguses in Baikal). Lubomirskia baikalensis is the most amazing endemic colony, which resembles the bushy sea corals. Bay bottom and coastal shallow water regions are lodged with insect larvae among which are more than 50 species of ruchejniks. Adult ruchejniks leave water environment, and it's possible to observe their fluing to Baikal coasts. Black insects mass coveres the coastal stones, bushes and even small trees. At that time ruchejniks become the feed of bears, picking up them from stone, and grauling, finding ruchejniks on the water surface.

 The fauna of Baikal fish is also various. There are 52 species (and approximately 60 sub species). The Baikal Omul is the representative of sigovye family, the endemic subspeice. The Omul is widespread in the Arctic basin of Eurasia and North America. It's the main industrial fish of Baikal and also the object of sport catching. The tipical environment of the species is the region of submarine mountain range right to 350 m in depth, while in autumn at the time of spawning it can be found in the rivers flowing into Baikal. The unique Baikal inhabitants are two species of endemic golomyanka family – big and small golomyanka. They are small fish (in the length of 20 sentimeters), living in open Baikal, on different depth right to maximum. Their feed is epishura and other crustacea animals. Rose-coloured or colorless transparent body, big transpatent fins, composed head with huge mouth are the features of Baikal golomyanka. There is a high concentration of lipids in big golomyanka body (44%), that provides the fish with the neutral buoyances. These two speices are viviparous. Baikal sturgeon (the subspecies of siberian sturgeon) is listed to the Russia Red Book. During 50 years Baikal sturgeon can achieve 1,8 m in the length being near 130 kg in weight. The feed of the sturgeon is bottom invertebrate animals and small fish. The environment is the Eastern coast of Baikal and Selenginskoe shallow water.

 Baikal Seal (riged seal). The fact of mere existence of that mammal, which are tipical mainly for see, at the centre of huge continent is a puzzle. Scientists support a theory under which ringed seal have penetrated from the Arctic zone through the Enisey and the Angara, or through the Lena (as it's proposed this river was the Baikal flow). There is also a version that Baikal ringed seal is a result of "local evolution". In any way, there is a stable riged seal population of several dozens on Baikal.The ringed seal whelps at the second part of winter or at the beginning of spring every year. Baikal seal is excellent plunger as the animal can sink into depth of 200 meters and be under water during 20 minutes.

SURFACE FAUNA

 Landscape diversity and climate variety are the reasons of rich flora and fauna in the region, what is the exception of East Siberia nature.

 It's impossible to calculate all invertebrate animals, a dominated fauna component.

 Among invertebrate animals there are many bird species, which are widespread both in plains and high-mountains.

 Reptile fauna in comparison with bird fauna is poorer. The most prevalent reptile is ordinary shitomordnik, a poisonous snake of rock steeps, mountain ranges and river plains.

 The order rodent is the lider anong mammals. 30 species of rodent are everywhere – from boggy plains (musk-rat, water-rat) to alpian belt (chernoshapochnyj marmot and north tree-creeper).

 Artiodactyla, the inhabitants of forest-steep plains and mountain ranges are the wild boar, the elk, the Manchurian deer, the north deer, the siberian roe, the musk-deer. The big predators of Baikal taiga are the glutton, the trot, the brown bear, the volf in forest-steep. Famous sable is small but vocacious predator. The major sable feed is mouse -rodent, but the sable can attack small artidactyla – musk-deer (while male buck weigh is near 1 kg). The sable likes cedar nuts.

There is a hope that the unique fauna pauperization cannot be allowed by human consciousness.

Tanichev A.I.
Assistant professor of Irkutsk State Agriculture Academy
Biological science candidate

Last updated: 22/08/08 20:25

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