The Bizarre World of Lake Baikal.

[Kai]

http://amphidrome.wordpress.com/2009/02/25/acanthogammarus-aetosaurs-of-baikal/

Have I ever talked about Lake Baikal here before? I'm not sure I have.

Lake Baikal is the worlds largest and deepest freshwater lake, and also one of the world's oldest. Located in Siberia, Baikal hosts one of the most diverse endemic freshwater ecosystem in the world. This includes the only known species of freshwater seals, many endemic fishes, huge reefs of freshwater sponges that look like underwater saguaro cacti, and the feature of this article, 1/3 of all the worlds gammarid species.



Thats not CGI, folks. Thats a Lake Baikal reef.

Now, the critter in the picture is a gammarid, a sort of freshwater crustacean more commonly known as a scud, or freshwater shrimp. Its not really a shrimp, its a whole different group of crustaceans outside the Decapoda.

In other parts of the world, Gammarids are generally small, and are often called sideswimmers or scuds because of their tendency to scuddle around in the water on their sides. Heres a more common European specimen:

http://www.waterwereld.nu/images/vlokk.jpg

The Gammarids of Lake Baikal have diversified in isolation, leading to many strange adaptations and body forms, including some very large and prehistoric looking species.







The above is a Acanthogammarus sp.

Lake Baikal, it just keeps amazing me.

[Kai]

http://scienceblogs.com/zooillogix/2009/02/size_and_number_of_tortuous_sp.php

Also, BARBED BEETLE PENII.

Kai,

Delivers.

Edit: ooopse, fixed.

[East Coast Hustle]

"Dive Lake Baikal" has long been on my list of things to do before I die.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

My mom went there to study... something. I don't really know what. She's a freshwater something something specializing in groundwater. She wrote a book about it. A really boring book.

[Kai]

freshwater invertebratologist specializing in groundwater?

Freshwater hydrologist specializing in groundwater?

[Template]

http://scienceblogs.com/zooillogix/2009/02/size_and_number_of_tortuous_sp.php

Also, BARBED BEETLE PENII.

Kai,

Delivers.

Edit: ooopse, fixed.

Still broke.  Now fixed.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

freshwater invertebratologist specializing in groundwater?

Freshwater hydrologist specializing in groundwater?

Must be hydrologist, because she studies the movement of water.

[Kai]

freshwater invertebratologist specializing in groundwater?

Freshwater hydrologist specializing in groundwater?

Must be hydrologist, because she studies the movement of water.

yeah, that sounds about right


Hydrologists can be fascinating scientists, or dull as pounding gravel into your forehead with a five dollar hammer.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

freshwater invertebratologist specializing in groundwater?

Freshwater hydrologist specializing in groundwater?

Must be hydrologist, because she studies the movement of water.

yeah, that sounds about right


Hydrologists can be fascinating scientists, or dull as pounding gravel into your forehead with a five dollar hammer.

Yeah... she's more the latter kind.

I mean, what she does is interesting, especially the slogging around in marshes part, but that book was mostly technical stuff oriented toward water quality specialists, and it was exactly as interesting as the least interesting possible interpretation of that could be.

[Kai]

freshwater invertebratologist specializing in groundwater?

Freshwater hydrologist specializing in groundwater?

Must be hydrologist, because she studies the movement of water.

yeah, that sounds about right


Hydrologists can be fascinating scientists, or dull as pounding gravel into your forehead with a five dollar hammer.

Yeah... she's more the latter kind.

I mean, what she does is interesting, especially the slogging around in marshes part, but that book was mostly technical stuff oriented toward water quality specialists, and it was exactly as interesting as the least interesting possible interpretation of that could be.

You know, my undergrad was in that stuff,


at least half of it anyway.

Well, I PASSED hydrology. don't know how much I actually remember.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

freshwater invertebratologist specializing in groundwater?

Freshwater hydrologist specializing in groundwater?

Must be hydrologist, because she studies the movement of water.

yeah, that sounds about right


Hydrologists can be fascinating scientists, or dull as pounding gravel into your forehead with a five dollar hammer.

Yeah... she's more the latter kind.

I mean, what she does is interesting, especially the slogging around in marshes part, but that book was mostly technical stuff oriented toward water quality specialists, and it was exactly as interesting as the least interesting possible interpretation of that could be.

You know, my undergrad was in that stuff,


at least half of it anyway.

Well, I PASSED hydrology. don't know how much I actually remember.

Funny thing is, she got her grad in it, and now she's an artist.

Go figure.

[Kai]

sometimes it just works out that way.



You learn a lot more than just whats in your field, in grad school, if you are good about it. I know I am, I'm just SWIMMING in all the shit I'm learning about all kinds of stuff. Life isn't long enough to learn it all.

[the last yatto]

The above is a Acanthogammarus sp.

kinda looks like a Tyranid

[The Good Reverend Roger]

Fun fact:  Lake Baikal contains 1/5th of all the world's fresh water.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

That's a LOT of fresh water.