Endemic planktonic diatoms are a major component of Lake Baikal sediments during interglacial periods. To investigate how these diatom assemblages are altered during sediment formation, quantitative plankton monitoring (1995)(1996)(1997)(1998) was integrated with sediment trapping over 2 yr (1996)(1997) in Baikal's southern basin (depth ϳ1,400 m). The traps consisted of both open (ϳ6 monthly) and sequential (ϳ2 weekly) collectors deployed throughout the water column. Sedimentation was seasonal, with diatom species composition, valve abundance, and total dry mass reflecting changes in the planktonic communities. Sedimented assemblages were transmitted largely intact to the deepest traps (ϳ1,300-1,390 m); some compositional blurring occurred from differential sinking rates and dissolution of diatom valves. A rapid mass flux event of Aulacoseira skvortzowii and A. baicalensis was recorded in summer 1997 with particle sinking rates between 60 and 100 m d Ϫ1 and dry mass fluxes Ͼ5 g m Ϫ2 d Ϫ1 . Although dissolution was evident for all species, more delicate taxa were preferentially affected (e.g., A. skvortzowii vegetative cells and fine Synedra species), whereas Nitzschia acicularis valves were almost entirely dissolved within the water column. Comparing trap and plankton diatom assemblages with those in nearby core tops demonstrated that a fundamental taphonomic change occurs in the surface sediment, with sedimentary diatom accumulation rates being only about 1% of trap deposition and plankton production rates. Dissolution was significant in explaining 5-30% of species variance between all taphonomic levels (plankton, trap samples, and surface sediments). Results indicate that diatom-based paleoclimatic records in Lake Baikal sediments could be improved and refined by taking taphonomic considerations into account.The transmission of biogenic environmental signals from the upper water column of deep water bodies to the sediment

Lake Baikal freezes for 4-5 months eachyear; yet the planktonic diatoms that grow under the ice include some of the largest species found in freshwater. An important factor influencing their growth is the depth of snow. In this study, a population of Aulacoseira baicalensis developed where there was little or no snow on the ice but declined where there was 10 cm of snow, because 99% of the available light was attenuated. Culture studies of light response showed that A. baicalensis was adapted to relatively low light intensities (\40 lmol m -2 s -1 ) that were close to the average that a cell experiences in L. Baikal when mixed vertically by convection to depths that can exceed 100 m. On sunny days, cell division could be inhibited down to [10 m depth but narrow (\15 lm) diameter cells trapped in high light intensities in sub-ice layers switched to auxosporulation and size regeneration.

Populations of the planktonic diatom Aulacoseira skvortzowii in Lake Baikal developed below 4uC, with mortality increasing rapidly at temperatures above 6.5uC. Resting spores were produced before the temperature rise associated with summer stratification. The main cue for sporulation was a decline in phosphate concentration below 15-20 mg L 21 P-PO 4 . If phosphate declined after the onset of stratification, sporulation was poor. In culture, all cells sporulated when phosphate limited but only 15% did so when nitrate limited. Also, spore formation was diameter dependent, with most narrow cells switching to size regeneration. This affected population dynamics, with high biomasses developing in the south and middle basins but only rarely in the north basin, because phosphate did not always fall below the induction threshold necessary for sporulation and size regeneration, leading to poor recruitment. In culture, germination occurred when spores were placed in new media, with stored reserves sufficient to complete two to three divisions, even in the dark. This helped populations re-establish when resuspended by wave action from coastal sediments where they lay dormant during summer.

Diatoms in Lake Baikal exhibit significant spatial variation, related to prevailing climate, lake morphology and fluvial input into the lake. Here we have assessed the threats to endemic planktonic diatom species (through the development of empirical models), which form a major component of primary production within the lake. Multivariate techniques employed include redundancy analysis (RDA) and Huisman-Olff-Fresco (HOF) models. Our analyses suggest that eight environmental variables were significant in explaining diatom distribution across the lake, and in order of importance these are snow thickness on the ice, water depth, duration of days with white ice, suspended matter in the lake, days of total ice duration, temperature of the water surface in July, concentration of zooplankton and suspended organic matter. Impacts on dominant phytoplankton diatom species are highlighted using t-value biplots. Predictions of future climate change on Lake Baikal are likely to result in shorter periods of ice cover, decreased snow cover across the lake in spring, increased fluvial input into the lake, and an increase in the intensification of surface water stratification during summer months. All these factors are likely to impact negatively on the slow-growing, cold-water endemics such as Aulacoseira baicalensis and Cyclotella minuta, which currently dominate diatom assemblages. Instead, taxa that are only intermittently abundant, at present, in offshore areas (e.g. Stephanodiscus meyerii) are likely to become more frequent. However, given the climatic gradient across the lake, the timing and extent of changes in community structure are likely to vary. Moreover, palaeolimnological records show that Lake Baikal diatom assemblages have been dynamic throughout the Holocene, with both endemic and cosmopolitan species exhibiting periods of dominance. Effects of climate change on the entire lake ecosystem may yet be profound as the structure of the pelagic food web may change from one based on endemic diatom taxa to one dominated by nondiatom picoplankton, and as limnological functioning (e.g. stratification and mixing) affects deepwater oxygen availability, nutrient cycling and trophic linkages.

Aulacoseira baicalensis (K. Meyer) Simonsen is a freshwater planktonic diatom that undergoes large seasonal changes in cell morphology related to changes in vertical mixing. Short cells (10-20 mm) with thin walls were formed under the ice of Lake Baikal but cell lengths increased up to 150 mm by the time mixing depth reached over 100 m in June. These long cells became resting stages that were packed with reserve products and had siliceous walls up to 4 mm thick. Increase in mixing depth gave access to sufficient silica for completion of resting stages in most years but not in high biomass years, which has long-term implications for the population. Wall thickening reduced the risk of dissolution during dormancy but it also reduced cell volume. Therefore, by increasing length, cells maintained storage space for reserves. Seasonal changes in valve length showed that individual valves did not last more than 6 months, equivalent to 5 to 10 divisions. Separation valves were important in determining the number of cells per filament during spring growth but cell breakage became more important during summer dormancy. Resting stages survived in cool, intermediate depths (50-150 m) during summer stratification and were returned to the surface during autumn overturn.