Caspian Sea Travel Blog

Caspian Sea

(Freshwater)

Most recently I have traveled to the Caspian Sea. It was a fantastic trip and it has taught me a lot. One thing that I learned that not many people know is that although it is called a sea it is considered a lake because it is still majority a freshwater source. This is because it is geologically an ocean. The Caspian Sea is the only place with this rare condition.

CIA. Caucasus Central Asia Political Map. N.d. Http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Caucasus_central_asia_political_map_2000.jpg, n.p.

The Caspian Sea also provides many things that other lakes and freshwater sources do not. This includes the major components of modern life; natural gas and oil. It is also a great location for different building stones and various salts

            The water in the Caspian Sea is also much different from any other lake. It is well known for its high percentage of salt. It contains about one third the amount of salt oceans carry, but it is still considered a freshwater lake because the inflowing rivers contain freshwater. It is connected to about 130 freshwater rivers with the main five making up about 90% of its inflowing water.

            The Caspian Sea being the largest enclosed body of water on the planet is often broken into three parts the northern, middle, and southern parts.  The northern part accounts for about 25% of the surface area, but only 0.5% of its volume. The middle and southern parts cover around 37% of the surface area each, and the middle contains 33.9% of the volume and the southern part containing about 65.6% of its volume. It is almost as if the Caspian Sea is made of completely different biomes to make one whole biome. Rainfall ranges from 10-20mm on the east coast to 1000-1200mm in the southern region, and the average temperature goes from about 10°C in the north to 17°C in the south.

Schmaltz, Jeff, MODIS Rapid Response Team, and NASA/GSFC. Caspian Sea from Orbit. 11 june 2003. Http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Caspian_Sea_from_orbit.jpg, Caspian Sea

            The Caspian Sea with such a unique environment is home to 1809 species and subspecies of animals. This is made of 1069 kinds of invertebrates, 325 kinds of parasites, and 415 kinds of vertebrates. The most popular fish being the sturgeon in which the Caspian holds 90% of. They are so popular because of the popularity of caviar and fish in the area. Fish are so popularly hunted in the Caspian that some fish like the beluga are in the possibility of facing extinction. Another popular species in the Caspian Sea are the Caspian seals which are also on the road of depletion. There has been a consistent decrease in their population for many years moving them from in the millions to about 400-300 thousand.

Nanosanchez. Caspian Seal. N.d. Commons.wikimedia.org, Caspian Sea.

            The Caspian Sea is home to a food web that seems similar to those of oceanic areas. The northern area of the sea is driven by freshwater algae as the producers, but the southern area is ruled by marine phytoplankton. This leads to primary production being done in the northern Caspian Sea. The producers are typically eaten by zooplankton or planktivorous fish, which are in tern eaten by larger carnivorous fish, birds, or the Caspian seal. There are then numerous types of fish, crabs, and snails that then proceed with the process in decomposing producers and dead consumers.

Modified from Kostianoy, 2005

            The Caspian Sea ranges in salinity levels like no other freshwater lake or pond. The northern areas of the Caspian Sea have salinity levels low enough to allow fresh water species like fauna and flora to grow, but in the south the salinity levels are to high. This is the opposite for marine species, which can grow in the salinity levels in the south and not in the north. The variable salinity throughout the Caspian Sea is like no other and means that every microorganism, plant, or animal has adapted in order to survive.

            While there I also learnt about symbiotic relationships that take place in freshwater biomes like the Caspian Sea. I was taught how algae and fungi work together to form lichens as a mutualistic symbiotic relationship.

            Overall I had a great trip and I highly recommend the Caspian Sea for your next travel.

           

Works Cited

1. "CASP INFO." Environment. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Apr. 2014. <http://www.caspinfo.net/content/content.asp?menu=0120000_000000>.

2. "Caspian Sea." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 17 Apr. 2014. Web. 18 Apr. 2014. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caspian_Sea>.

3. "Home Links Caspian Sea & Neighbours." Lists as Navigation. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Apr. 2014. <http://www.caspianstudies.com/Links/Country/Caspian.html>.

4. "Caspian Sea Environment." Caspian Sea Environment. CaspEcoProject Management and Coordination Unit, n.d. Web. 18 Apr. 2014. <http://www.caspianenvironment.org/newsite/Caspian-Biodiversity3.htm>.

5. "Symbiosis for Freshwater Biomes." Freshwater Biomes. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Apr. 2014. <http://thefreshwaterbiome.weebly.com/symbiosis-for-freshwater-biomes.html>.

6. Grove, Maryjanna. "Caspian Sea." The Seas Project. N.p., 8 Dec. 2010. Web. 18 Apr. 2014. <http://theseasproject.weebly.com/caspian-sea.html>.