"I am a Baikal seal, and who are you?" 

So (or something like that said The only mammal of Lake Baikal, sticking out of the hole, was seen by a fisherman.

When the lake is frozen over, seals breathe through special vents—they make them themselves by scraping the ice beneath with their claws. This seal decided to take advantage of a ready-made hole in the ice—and meet a new human at the same time. 

Baikal seals are endemic, meaning they are found nowhere except Lake Baikal. In recent years, the seals have been suffering from warm winters: they lack ice suitable for breeding. "NeMoskva" Wrote about how much unrest there was this winter: due to the late freeze-up, the seal pups could have been left without shelter and died - fortunately, everything ended well.

The Baikal seal is not listed in the Russian Federation's Red Data Book, but is on the IUCN Red List, indicating a potential threat to the species. The foundation is responsible for protecting the seal. Lake Baikal.