''Lubomirskia baikalensis'' is a freshwater species of
sponge
Sponges, the members of the phylum Porifera (; meaning 'pore bearer'), are a basal animal clade as a sister of the diploblasts. They are multicellular organisms that have bodies full of pores and channels allowing water to circulate throug ...
that is
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...
to
Lake Baikal, Russia. It is commonly called the Lake Baikal sponge and it is the most abundant sponge in the lake, but all the approximately 15 species of sponges in the family
Lubomirskiidae are restricted to Baikal.
''Lubomirskia baikalensis'' is found on hard bottoms at depths between .
In relatively shallow water, it is bark-like, and covers stones somewhat like a carpet.
[ From a depth of it starts to have branches,][ and can reach a height of more than , which is unusually large for a freshwater sponge.][Belikov; Kaluzhnaya; Schröder; Müller; and Müller (2007). ''Lake Baikal endemic sponge Lubomirskia baikalensis: structure and organization of the gene family of silicatein and its role in morphogenesis.'' Porifera Research: Biodiversity, Innovation and Sustainability, pp. 179-188.] On rocky grounds at depths of the branching form is particularly common and may form "forests".[ This sponge is in mutual symbiosis with a green dinoflagellate, making it green in appearance. ]Okadaic acid
Okadaic acid, C44H68O13, is a toxin produced by several species of dinoflagellates, and is known to accumulate in both marine sponges and shellfish. One of the primary causes of diarrhetic shellfish poisoning, okadaic acid is a potent inhibitor of ...
produced by the dinoflagellate assists the sponge to survive when Lake Baikal is iced over in winter, and the water temperature is close to .
References
External links
Picture of this species
Haplosclerida
Animals described in 1773
Fauna of Lake Baikal
Taxa named by Peter Simon Pallas
{{Demosponge-stub