Lake Baikal, Russia's Ozero Baykal, also named
Ozero Bajkal, a lake in the southern part of Siberia east of the Republic of
Buryatia and the Irkutsk oblast (in the province) of Russia. It is the oldest
freshwater lake in the world (20-25 million years old), and the continental
water level, 1,620 meters high. Its area is 12,200 square kilometers (31,500
square kilometers), with a length of 395 km (636 km) and an average width of 48
km. It is also the largest freshwater lake in the world, containing about
one-fifth of the world's fresh water, about 5,500 cubic miles (23,000 cubic
miles). Lake Baikal flows over 330 rivers and streams, the largest of which
includes Selenga, Barguzin, Upper (Verkhnyaya) Angara, Chikoy, and Uda.
Baikal lies in a deep ravine surrounded by
mountains, some of them more than 2,000 feet [2,000 m] above sea level. The
ground floor of the lake is about 1,600 feet [6,100 m] in diameter. The
eruption of the earth's crust produces hot springs in the area. There are
occasional major earthquakes; in 1862 an earthquake shook about 200 square
miles [200 sq km] north of the Selenga delta, opening up a new port in Baikal
known as Proval Bay.
The lake pond is incompatible, with large
slopes on the west coast and beautiful slopes to the east. The nomadic
coastline stretches for some 1,300 miles (2,100 km), with huge markings on the
harbors of Barguzin, Chivyrkuysky, and Proval and in the Ayaya and Free State
mountains; The Svyatoy Nos Peninsula extends into a lake from the east coast.
Baikal consists of about 45 islands and islets, the largest of which are Olkhon
(about 700 square miles) and Bolshoy (Great) Ushkany (9.4 square miles). Water
intrusion into the lake mainly comes from rivers, especially Selenga. The only
exit is the Angara River, the Yenisey River.
Baikal's climate is milder than that of the
surrounding area. Winter air temperatures are between ° 6 ° F (−21 ° C), and in
August temperatures are 52 ° F (11 ° C). The surface of the lake freezes in
January and melts in May or June. The surface water temperature in August is
between 50 and 54 ° F (10 and 12 ° C) and reaches 68 ° F (20 ° C) below sea
level. The waves are about 15 meters (4.6 meters). The water is very clear;
from the top one can see up to 130 meters (40 meters). Its salt content is low,
and it is low in minerals.
The plants and animals in the lake are rich
and varied. There are between 1,500 and 1,800 species of animals at different
depths, and hundreds of plant species live in or near the earth. Most of these
species are full of Baikal. There are about 50 species of fish, belonging to
seven families; most of these are 25 species of gobies. OM salmon is highly
prized; and most important are the gray, lake whitefish, and sturgeon.
Outstanding in the lake are the golomyanka, a family species of the family
Comephoridae, which gives birth at a young age. One type of mammal is the Baikal
seal, or nerpa (Phoca sibirica). There are more than 320 species of birds in
the Baikal area.
The Limnological Institute of the Siberian Division of the Russian Academy of Sciences is located in the town of Listvyanka, such as Baikal Sanatorium, and the water station at Irkutsk State University is located in Bolshiye Koty (Bolshoy Koti). The protection of natural resources in the area began with the establishment of the Barguzinsky Nature Reserve in 1916; thereafter the Baikalsky (1969) and Baikalo-Lenskiy (1986), Folikhinskiy (1976) and Kabansky (1974) wildlife sanctuaries were added, as well as the Zabaikalsky and Pribaikalsky parks (both in 1986). Lake Baikal Coastal Protection Zone, which includes the lake and its surrounding areas (a total of 88,000 square miles), was created in 1987, and the same area was renamed UNESCO World Heritage in 1996.
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