Bright future for Baikal

From Krasnoiarsk, April 16th 2009.
Before closing the topic of Lake Baikal, let me share interesting learning that helps break pre-conceived ideas.

1. Lake Baikal is much polluted! Wrong.
Since the collapse of Soviet Union and especially in the 90’s, American, German and French journalists from TV channels and newspapers, as well as cultural and ecological associations, have written and worked on Lake Baikal risks.
Lake Baikal is indeed uniquely important as it has so many endemic species, but situation has changed and risk remains limited.

First, the population of the basin is very low with reduced domestic and agricultural outlets bringing only very little phosphate and nitrogen to the lake.
Sources of pollution are much localized and could be, until the past years, clearly identified as 3:
- Railway Baikal-Amur,
- Selenga river basin,
- Baikalsk paper-cellulose manufacturing site.



The first source is localized around Severobaikalsk, city built in 1974 for the exploitation of the BAM railway. However, only 9% of existing natural resources of this region are effectively used and this source is considered as low risk.

The second area is along the biggest affluent of Lake Baikal, Selenga river, bringing to the south-eastern part of the lake outlets from Mongolia and Buriatie. It is particularly dangerous for northern and central of the lake as streams bring these outlets to the north, on around 1,500km2. Some of those have been identified up to 130km to the north-east.

But by far the biggest source of pollution for Baikal is Baikalsk paper-cellulose manufacturing complex, located in the extreme south of the lake and which contributes by 59% to the outlets of used water. Cellulose is a strategic material for aeronautic industry and in the context of Cold War Khroutchchev decided in 1954 to build a Sovietic plant dedicated for this material. The choice of the site was driven by 3 criteria:
i) A lot of water close by with low mineral content,
ii) Close pinewood forests as raw material,
iii)And good infrastructure for easier logistics.
Lake Baikal and its South part for the Trans-Siberian railway were by far the best choice, and the decision led in 1959 to the construction of a new city around the plant: Baikalsk.
However, following a decreasing demand and pressure from scientific and ecological associations, the site has been closed a few years ago, giving Lake Baikal a brighter future.

2. Lake Baikal is endangered and threatened of disappearing! Wrong again.

The speed of filling with sediments is lower than the one of the lake's cavity.
On the one hand, the rift is opening further at a speed of 0.1cm/year, the lake is going deeper by 2mm/year, and the surrounding mountains are becoming higher.
On the other hand, the Lake Baikal is cristaline so that it brings only few sediments. The protection by the taiga helps reducing even more the sedimentation rate, down to 0.25mm/year.
In consequence, the balance is favorable for a long existence of the lake: the older Lake Baikal gets, the bigger.

Endemic animal species of Baikal

From Irkutsk, April 9th 2009

Baikal Lake is connected to the Arctic Ocean by one river, that’s why its endemic species can be divided in two groups: indigenous species and species coming from Arctic Ocean. These species are classified as "least concern" by IUCN and therefore not endangered, but are scientifically very interesting to study. 

1. Indigenous species
1.1 The endemic reliques
Some species, known from the Tertiary and shared with other lakes, have disappeared elsewhere and only remain in Baikal. The best example is the sponges (“goubki” in Russian), attached to the rocky deep ground of Baikal until 600m depth. They belong to a family unique in the world: Lubomirskiidae, which are key information database as they have almost not evolved since the Tertiary. Scientists call them “living fossils”.

1.2 The Baikal monsters
Other species have an enigmatic origin. We can say that they were born in Baikal and have evolved locally. It is the case of the fish without scales (see below picture).

But the most surprising ones are the so called “naked fishes”:
- The big golomianka: Comephorus baicalensis (Pallas, 1776), where the female can reach 25cm and the male 16cm.
- The small golomianka: Comephorus dybowskii (Korotneff, 1905), where female and male can reach respectively 15 and 12cm.
Golomianka has a white transparent body with pale pink shadows, nacre reflects that makes the orange around the eyes come out even more. The legend says that it is possible to read the newspaper through it. Its wings are indeed fully transparent.
This fish contains a lot of fat. In the big golomianka, fat represents 43 to 44% of its total weight (Galazi, 1984). But its main specificity is its reproduction modus. Different to all fishes of Baikal and almost all fishes on Earth, the golomianka is viviparous. It gives birth to “larves” that can live on their own, and not to eggs. It therefore does not need to move to give birth, neither within the lake, nor in the rivers. The other specificity is that parents die after giving birth. The golomianka is the only fish on Earth to associate viviparous reproduction modus to death after giving birth.

2. Species coming from Arctic Ocean

Other species come from a migration from Arctic Ocean and an evolution in situ. It is the case of the most appreciated fish of the lake, the “Omul”, Coregonus autumnalis migratoris (Georgi, 1775) that most probably migrated from the Arctic Ocean via Ienissei and Angare rivers. It is also the case of the “phoque”, the nierpa, Phoca (Pusa) sibirica (Gmelin, 1735), one of three fresh water “phoques” on Earth with the ones from Ladoga and Saimaa lakes but the only one to live so far from the sea. An interesting study has been led to classify the nierpa within the existing Phoca families and uses 3 different methodologies. The objective was to prove that it comes from Phoca hispida, the ring Arctic “phoque”, called “akiba” by Russians, who would have migrated through Ienissei and Angara rivers system. Once settled in the lake, it would have evolved progressively to match its new geographical context and reach its current morphology.
Method 1: comparing morphology
The “griffes” of nierpa are bigger and stronger because the ice of the lake is more solid than the one of the sea. The positions and structure of its teeth with more space in between correspond to an alimentation with smaller fishes. The larger eyes and higher haemoglobin level in its blood are designed for deeper waters to find their favourite food.
Method 2: comparing parasites
The parasites on the nierpa (in French, “vers parasites et pous”) and the ones on the Phoca hispida have many similarities, while they are totally different from the ones on the Phoca caspica for example (Pasthoukov, 1982, 1993).
Method 3: using genetic tests
Unfortunately, the more recent genetic method does not allow confirming the classification confirmed by methods 1 and 2. The genetic similarity within the Phoca family is at 55% between the 4 sub-families, taken two by two. Therefore, the similarity between nierpa and Phoca hispida are not stronger than with other Phoca sub-families, and does not lead to a clear classification.

Crossing Baikal lake on skis: 42km

From Irkutsk, April 2nd 2009.

What a wonderful excursion that was proposed to us: crossing Baikal lake on skis to reach Xakussy village, sleep in a cabin and enjoy the hot springs the following day. But this is when we got into the preparation details that i realize how much of an expedition this is: Severobaikalsk-Xakussy 42km, weather forecast -10grads with sun but wind.

Here are some pictures to give you a feel of the adventure. The next posts on Baikal are in preparation: Xakussy hot springs, endemic species of Baikal, and school camp in Novii Uoyan Siberian village.

Here is as far as our little truck takes us:

Ready for the start: 30km on skis to go.

Loneliness in the middle of Baikal lake.

Progressing...

Our more than awaited tea break table, every 5km :-)

Still smiling...

Sunset on the Baikal "Sea"

Finishing by foot in the night...

Introducing Baikal lake (1st part)

From Severobaikalsk (Northern Baikal lake), March 30th 2009

Baikal lake, classified and protected within UNESCO heritage, is the lake of world records:
- The biggest reserve of fresh water on Earth with 23,000km3 to be compared to the 89km3 of Geneva lake (see below figure),
- The richest in term of animal and plant species with 3,500 species, including 2,500 animal ones (Timochkine, 1995), and a 82% endemism rate (Mazenova, 1995),
- The oldest with its 23 millions years,
- And the deepest reaching 1,637m at maximum.

Compared to Geneva lake (the biggest lake in Western Europe), Baikal is 5 times deeper, 54 times larger, and contains 258 times more water. Baikal’s volume equals the one of Baltic Sea.

Baikal lake is the sacred sea (“sviatoie morie”), known in the legend as the Father and his daughters representing the rivers connected to him. The legend says he had difficult relationships with his one daughter Angara and this is why it is the only one river flowing from Baikal lake, while all others flow into.

Baikal is also what saves and helps to escape Rawicz and his friends prisoners of a goulag near Yakoutsk. Going along the Lena river and planning to flew through Mongolia, he suggests: “Trouvons seulement l’extremite Nord du lac et sa long rive orientale nous menera presque au dehors de Siberie. Cette idee du Baikal comme guide naturel pour quitter ce pays de servage fut l’aiguillon qui nous fit poursuivre a marche forcee au cours des semaines suivantes”.

Finally, Baikal plays a major role in history. December 14th 1825, tsar Nicolai 1st stops the insurrection of officers and members of the intelligentsia in Saint-Petersbourg, the so called “insurrection decabriste”. Condamned to exil and forced work in Siberia, several dozens of these revolutionaries established in Irkoutsk. Nobles, educated and generous, they will give a new twist and dimension to the region. For example, lieutenant Mikhail K. Kioukhelbeker had taken part in expeditions to Artic Circle and was a knowledgeable marine and explorator. He developed in Bargouzine gulf at Baikal lake the first method of winter sondages from the banquise (Kolotilo, 1989). Famous poet Alexander Pouchkine had several of his good friends among the “Decabrists” and sent them the following “Missive en Siberie” in their honor:

En Siberie, au fond des mines,
Plein d’endurance et de fierte,
Sachez que votre oeuvre chemine
Vers l’ideal de liberte!

Fidele soeur de l’infortune,
L’esperance dans vos sous-sols
Maintient courage et foi commune,
L’heure attendue a pris son vol!

Et malgre toutes les serrures,
L’amour ainsi que l’amitie
Vont au fond des prisons obscures
Porter la voix de Liberte.

Quand tomberont vos lourdes chaines,
Vos freres rendront a vos bras
Le glaive, et terminant vos peines,
La Liberte vous attendra.

The beach


Overlooking

Winter

Ice


Crossing the lake