From June 16 to June 30, 2025, employees of the IEE RAS conducted an expedition to conduct a comprehensive study of the Baikal seal on the Ushkany Islands archipelago.
During the expedition, 20 animals were captured. Blood, fur and whisker samples were taken from all of them for further health studies. Satellite transmitters were installed on 15 animals to track their migrations.
IEE RAS postgraduate students Polina Shibanova and Polina Ilyina, and MSU biology student Vlada Vasilyeva stayed on the Ushkany Islands until the end of July. They will be keeping records of seals on the archipelago's haulouts, as well as conducting behavioral studies to assess the impact of tourists on haulout seals.
IEE RAS thanks the Federal State Budgetary Institution “Zapovednoye Podlemorye” and personally its director, Mikhail Evgenievich Ovdin, for assistance in organizing and conducting field work.
The project was made possible by the Lake Baikal Foundation, the World Around You Foundation, the Siberian Wellness Company, and the Moskvarium Oceanography and Marine Biology Center.
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RAS: "The expedition for a comprehensive study of the Baikal seal has been completed"