Ladoga seal activities. The Ladoga seal is listed as an Appendix II species under the Bern Convention and also included in the Red Data Book of the Russian Federation. Ladoga seal The Ladoga ringed seal (; Pusa hispida ladogensis), is a freshwater subspecies of the ringed seal ("Pusa hispida") which are found entirely in Lake Ladoga in northwestern Russia. The subspecies evolved during the last ice age, about 11,000 years ago. As the glaciers retreated and water levels changed, the Baltic ringed seal (including Ladoga seals) was trapped in freshwater lakes and separated from the Arctic ringed seal. It is related to
Staraya Ladoga the Volkhov River.The fortress was rebuilt at the turn of the 15th and 16th centuries. In 1703, Peter the Great founded the town of Novaya Ladoga (New Ladoga) closer to the bank of Lake Ladoga. The ancient fortress thenceforth declined and came to be known as Staraya Ladoga (Old Ladoga), in order to distinguish it from the new town. The mid-12th-century churches of St. George and of Mary's Assumption stand in all their original glory. Inside St. George's, some magnificent 12th-century frescoes are still visible. In addition, there is a mid-12th-century church of St. Climent, which stands in ruins. There