On September 24, a press conference dedicated to the largest expedition in the last decade to study Arctic animal species was held in Moscow. The expedition was organized by the specialists of the Arctic Scientific Center LLC together with the A.N. Severtsov IEE RAS and the Center for Marine Research of Lomonosov Moscow State University. The participants of the press conference talked about the expedition and presented the atlas “Russian Arctic. Space. Time. Resource.", which is a collection of valuable scientific data on physical geography, ecology and the history of research in the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation.
The expedition lasted a little over a month. The research vessel left the port of Arkhangelsk and headed for the northern part of the Arctic Ocean. The expedition members were divided into two main groups: some studied polar bears, others - the Atlantic walrus. The first group was based at the Cape Zhelaniya station of the Russian Arctic National Park. The second group was based on the research vessel "Ivan Petrov" in the area of the island of the Franz Josef Land archipelago, as well as the Oran Islands and Victoria Island.
Director of the Institute, Academician of RAS Vyacheslav Vladimirovich Rozhnov declared that the task of biologists and ecologists in the Arctic is to study how animals adapt to changing conditions, including climatic ones. To do this, scientists use a variety of methods - they set up camera traps, place GPS collars on animals, and also use non-invasive methods - for example, collect animal secretions. These methods do not imply contact with animals; therefore, they are the safest for both scientists and the objects of study.
V.V. Rozhnov noted: "Polar bears, walruses and whales receive special attention in the study of the Russian Arctic, because these species are at the very top of the food chain pyramid, so they reflect the state of the ecosystem as a whole in most detail."
Ilya Nikolaevich Mordvintsev, head of polar bear research, ecologist, expert in climatology and ice conditions at IEE RAS, spoke about how polar bears are tested and why they are immobilized: “The polar bear is a dangerous animal. There is a set of drugs that are least harmful to animals. We use them while taking into account the weight of the animal. At that moment, while the animal is sleeping and immobilized, we put a GPS collar on it, take blood and wool tests. The total time the analyses require is always different, but after we have finished, an antidote is introduced so that the animal wakes up and can walk on its own. It is important for us to check that the bear is in a stable and good condition and will be able to fend for itself when meeting another animal. At the same time, there is always a specialist with a veterinary education among our researchers. " Ilya Nikolayevich added that over the entire period of work, almost 100 polar bears were immobilized, and all cases ended safely for both animals and humans.
Ilya Nikolayevich also noted the problem of the depletion of bears. This is primarily due to the reduction of ice in the Arctic. If earlier a polar bear could freely hunt seals, now due to the reduction of the ice area it does not always have such an opportunity. As a result, bears feed on shore pickings and look for food on land, including in the grass. However, the bears are adapting - if in 2012 we encountered six emaciated individuals, then this year all were in good state.
Svetlana Mikhailovna Artemyeva, head of the expedition, head of walrus research, leading engineer of the laboratory of behavior and behavioral ecology of mammals at IEE RAS, spoke about who is part of such expeditions and how the work was carried out: “It is very important that the team works harmoniously, as one organism. It is equally important that there is understanding with the ship's crew.
In this expedition, everything was well aligned, which helped to achieve very high results. Most of the staff consists of experienced professionals, but sometimes young students are included. Volunteers and tourists are not taken on such expeditions, since the number of cabins on the ship is limited. "
A large-scale survey of walruses has not been carried out for over a decade. Svetlana Mikhailovna is one of the most prominent walrus specialists in Russia. She shared that this expedition managed to put satellite tags on walruses and monitor their movements in real time. This allows to observe how walruses use the waters of Franz Josef Land. During the expedition, new habitats of marine mammals were discovered. In total, 3,300 walruses were counted during the voyage - this is a very important result, because according to the literature, this numbers of this group only reached 3,000 individuals.
At the press conference, special attention was paid to the great collective work of a large number of specialists - the atlas “Russian Arctic. Space. Time. Resources". The huge book weighs 5 kg. And this is not surprising, because 140 authors worked on the atlas - researchers, scientists, cartographers and illustrators. The circulation of the edition is 1200 copies. It will be distributed to scientific libraries and events that attract the scientific community.
This atlas is not just a book that contains all the relevant and known information at the moment, but also a fixation of those observations and studies that will be very useful to compare with new data published in future editions. Indeed, despite the fact that scientists have a lot of work to do with the samples collected during the expedition, the next one is already planned for the next year. The Arctic is a region that is not always ready to receive guests, only for a short period of time a year. And a large number of specialists and scientists work all year round to analyze the data obtained and plan new research.
Additional information: https://innopraktika.ru/news/1393/