130 seals die mysteriously and washed ashore at the world's deepest lake in Russia

Around 130 dead seals have been washed up on the shores of Russia's Lake Baikal,  the world's deepest lake, authorities said Tuesday.

Photo via Earth Pics, Facebook

The Baikal seal is the tiniest species in the world and no one know why they could colonise the ancient Siberian lake but they are exclusively in Lake Baikal in southern Siberia, Russia, near the Mongolian border. 

Lake Baikal has thousands of endemic creatures has been suffering from a series of harming phenomena in recent years.

Photo via Russia Friends, Facebook

Environmental ministry spokesman Nikolai Gudkov said there had been about 130 animals found dead. He said they had taken water samples to understand whether the incident is caused by water pollution.

Photo via Russia Friends, Facebook

He said the preliminary theories suggest that the death is not related to the pollution.

He also added that scientists had taken the animal's biopsies but the seals are not endangered species while their population has actually increased to around 130,000.

According to the IUCN, future climate change can potentially make an effect on seals' breeding. While the lake is isolated from lands, sea animals living there are easy to be affected by the climate change since they can't move to other habitats.

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VIENNA (AP) — Russian-born Anastasia Potapova has switched allegiance to Austria, clearing a path for the 51st-ranked player to compete in the Billie Jean King Cup.

Potapova will become Austria's highest-ranked women's player, ahead of No. 94 Julia Grabher, with the nationality switch, which she announced on social media.

“Welcome to the team,” the Austrian tennis federation said in a statement that also confirmed her move.

The 24-year-old Potapova played at the Billie Jean King Cup in 2018 and 2019, but Russia has been banned from team competitions since the invasion of Ukraine.

“Austria is a place I love, is incredibly welcoming and a place where I feel totally at home,” Potapova wrote on Instagram on Thursday. “I love being in Wien and look forward to making my second home there. As part of this, I am proud to announce that starting from 2026 I will be representing my new homeland Austria in my professional tennis career from this point onwards.”

Potapova's highest ranking was No. 21 in June 2023. Her best Grand Slam result is reaching the fourth round at the 2024 French Open. She has won three singles titles.

As a youth player, she was the 2016 girls champion at Wimbledon.

Potapova was criticized in 2023 for wearing a Spartak Moscow soccer club T-shirt during a warmup at Indian Wells.

AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis

FILE -Anastasia Potapova, of Russia, during the first round of the U.S. Open tennis tournament, Aug. 24, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Vera Nieuwenhuis, File)