The Marine Mammal Council, the Nature Reserves EcoCenter, and the Clean Seas International Environmental Fund jointly decided to establish Caspian Seal Day. It will be celebrated on March 24th. On this day in 2020, the Caspian seal was included in the Red Book of the Russian Federation. The Caspian seal has been on the list of the International Union for Conservation of Nature since 2008, with the status of “endangered”. In recent years, massive dumping of bodies of dead seals have been regularly observed in the Caspian Sea. Various causes have been cited for this phenomenon, including climate change, infectious diseases, and possible exposure to pollution. Changing ice conditions and falling sea levels are forcing animals to find new places to give birth and moult. Aerial surveys carried out in the Russian and Kazakh parts of the Caspian Sea showed that in 2023 their numbers decreased by 16.5% compared to 2022. In order to attract the attention of the Russian community to the topic of saving and preserving the endemic of the Caspian Sea, the entire ecosystem of this sea, it was decided to establish Caspian Seal Day.

Fig.1: Brandt’s vole Brandt's vole is a small herbivorous rodent that inhabits steppe and mountainous regions (up to 2900 m above sea level) of Mongolia, southeastern China and Transbaikalia in Russia. Field studies indicate that voles of this species are active during daylight hours, breed seasonally and live in family groups. They are characterized by a variable reproductive system - from polygyny to promiscuity, depending on population density, spatial distribution of females and the composition of family groups. Each family group occupies a separate, protected habitat area. Aggressive interactions between family group members are extremely rare. In some families, several females coexist in one burrow and jointly raise their offspring. Social relations between family members are based on mutual tolerance with some signs of age hierarchy, when adults and young animals from older broods occupy a higher social position. Brandt's voles have well-defined cooperation: members of the same family jointly defend their territory, dig holes and underground tunnels, make nests, store food and raise offspring. Cooperation and family ties contribute to the survival of family groups of this species in the extreme climatic conditions of Central Asia. Fig.2: Enclosures at the Scientific Experimental Base of the Institute of Ecology and Evolution of the Russian Academy of Sciences “Chernogolovka” in the Moscow region, where observations of voles were carried out. Many features of the social behavior of Brandt's voles were studied in detail during observations of them in enclosures at the Scientific Experimental Base of the Institute of Ecology and Evolution of the Russian Academy of Sciences "Chernogolovka" in the Moscow region. Such observations are unique. The data obtained expand our understanding of the ecology and social behavior of rodents. Based on the results of many years of research and a review of literature data on the study of the ecology and social behavior of the Brandt’s vole, carried out by V.S. Gromov, Doctor of Biological Sciences, leading researcher at the Laboratory of Mammal Behavior and Behavioral Ecology of the Institute of Ecology and Evolution of the Russian Academy of Sciences, an article was published in the “Journal of Arid Environments". Gromov V.S., 2023. Ecology and social behavior of the Brandt’s vole: A generalized review // Journal of Arid Environments V.214. 104994. doi: 10.1016/j.jaridenv.2023.104994

On March 19, a lecture by A.A.Lisovsky  was held at the Institute of Zoology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing on the topic "Biodiversity databases in Russia and the problem of species distribution modeling in temperate climate". The main emphasis of the lecture was on the features of using information from public databases to analyze the geographical structure of biodiversity. The characteristic difficulties associated with attempts at ecological modeling of species in a limited area, especially those related to forest species inhabiting a temperate climate zone, were described, and ways to solve them were proposed. The lecture took place as part of a long-term collaboration with the Key Laboratory of Zoological Systematics and Evolution and the National Zoological Museum of China. Before the start of the lecture A.A. Lisovsky was awarded a diploma from the International Scholarship Initiative of the President of the Chinese Academy of Sciences PIFI for visiting scientists. A collaborative study of the genetic and morphological structure of small mammal biodiversity in the Sichuan Basin is being carried out with support from PIFI.

The conference was held in Moscow from March 19 to 21, 2024. One of the main topics of the conference was the study and conservation of the polar bear and other Arctic mammals. At the plenary session “Conservation of the Arctic: Strategic Priorities”, the director of the Institute of Ecology and Evolution of the Russian Academy of Sciences, corresponding member of RAS S.V. Naidenko discussed the topic “Study and monitoring of the current state of large mammals and birds of the Russian Arctic (within the framework of biodiversity conservation programs).” The moderator of the working session “Scientific research of marine mammals and other animals in the Arctic” was D.M. Glazov, leading engineer of the IEE RAS, executive director of the Council of Marine Mammals. Also participating in this session was Ph.D. M.A. Solovyova, head of scientific work on research programs for seals (Laboratory of Behavior and Behavioral Ecology of Mammals of the Institute of Ecology and Evolution of the Russian Academy of Sciences). During this working session, the state of marine mammals and other Arctic vertebrate species, methods for studying them, including tagging, measures aimed at their conservation and sustainable use, results of monitoring, population surveys, and the results of special expeditions to study marine mammals were discussed. N.G. Platonov, Ph.D., senior researcher at the Institute of Ecology and Evolution of the Russian Academy of Sciences, (Cabinet of Earth Remote Sensing Methods and Thematic Interpretation in Ecology) took part in the work session “Studying the biology and monitoring of the polar bear.” This part of the conference presented the results of research into the biology and ecology of the polar bear, diseases faced by the polar bear, the consequences of pollution of the polar bear’s habitat, and the level of contamination of the biological tissues and organs of the polar bear. I.N. Mordvintsev, Ph.D., leading researcher at the Institute of Ecology and Evolution of the Russian Academy of Sciences, received a letter of gratitude from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Ecology of the Russian Federation. During the conference, the participants signed a framework “Agreement on interaction on issues of environmentally friendly and safe development of protected areas, professional and public monitoring, development of the voluntary movement, popular science and ecological tourism, civil science, training and education.” Also within the framework of the conference, an “Agreement on cooperation on conducting scientific research on the Chukotka-Alaskan polar bear population, developing measures and finding solutions for the conservation of the polar bear and carrying out environmental protection and rehabilitation measures for habitats, implementing projects aimed at monitoring the polar bear and solving conflict situations “man-polar bear”, including with the involvement of local and indigenous residents and volunteers.” You can view photos of the VII International Scientific and Practical Conference “The Universe of the Polar Bear: Arctic Ecosystems” by following the link. Related materials: Nature.Kremlin: "The conference "The Universe of the Polar Bear: Arctic Ecosystems" started in Moscow and Chukotka" Meteonews: "Russian scientists presented new data on the study of the Arctic" TASS. Science: “The neural network counted almost 180 polar bears on the Bear Islands in Yakuti”

Fig. 1. Graphic expression of the degree of similarity of the helminth faunas of sculpin, navaga and cod of the White Sea. Parasitic organisms are an integral component of natural ecosystems. The composition of the parasitic fauna reflects the ecological connections of the hosts, the biogeographical features of the region and the impact of a number of other environmental factors. The parasitic fauna of cod, saffron cod (the navaga) and sculpin in the White Sea has been studied repeatedly, but large-scale parasitological studies of these fish have not been carried out in the last three decades. To fill this gap, a team of scientists from Moscow State University, the All-Russian Research Institute of Fisheries and Oceanography and the A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution RAS conducted a study of the helminths of these fish species in the waters of the N.A. Pertsov White Sea Biological Station of Moscow State University in 2021-2022. Fig 2. Cod The species composition of parasites in the three studied fish species turned out to be quite similar (Figure 1), however, the helminth communities in individuals of navaga and White Sea cod were closer in structure to each other than to the communities of sculpin, which reflects both the phylogenetic and ecological proximity of the first two host species. The authors’ conclusions indicate that the level of infection of White Sea cod, navaga and sculpin with helminths turned out to be consistently high over 85 years of observations in the White Sea. Figure 3. Sculpin Materials published in the article: Logvinenko, A.D., Gordeev, I.I., Ekimova, I.A. Sokolov S.G. (2024). Helminths of three species of White Sea fishes.Parasitology Research123, 39. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-023-08017-9

The Caspian Sea is the largest closed lake on earth, stretching across two parts of the world - Asia and Europe. It is distinguished by a unique ecosystem that is home to more than four hundred endemic species unique to this region. The Caspian seal is endemic and the only representative of aquatic mammals in the Caspian Sea. It is at the top of the food chain, so the stable state of its population serves as an indicator of the well-being of the entire marine ecosystem. We present for your attention the scientific and educational film “Caspian Seal”, prepared by order of the Fisheries Committee of the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the NCOC company. The chief researcher of IEE RAS, Chairman of the RAS Scientific Council on Problems of Ecology of Biological Systems, Academician of the RAS Vyacheslav Vladimirovich Rozhnov took part in the filming.

In China, a joint Chinese-Russian scientific laboratory was opened in Heilongjiang province to preserve and restore the Amur tiger population. The laboratory appeared thanks to the support of two leading organizations in the field of research and wildlife conservation - the Center for the Study of Felidae at the Chinese Northeastern University of Forestry and the A.N. Institute of Ecology and Evolution A.N. Severtsov RAS (IPEE RAS). As part of the work, the laboratory plans to create a gene library of Amur tigers and Far Eastern leopards, monitor and study diseases of wild animals, and also observe the behavior of Amur tiger cubs. “The Amur tiger and the Amur leopard have been returning to China in recent years, primarily due to conservation measures in the Russian Federation. Wild animals know no boundaries, and they need to be studied and preserved together with our Chinese colleagues. We hope that joint research within the framework of the newly created laboratory will allow us to save the tiger in Russia and China,” said the director of the Institute of Ecology and Evolution of the Russian Academy of Sciences, corresponding member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Doctor of Biological Sciences Sergey Valerievich Naidenko. You can see all the photos by following the link. Related materials: Xilhua News: "China and Russia have established a joint laboratory for the conservation and restoration of Amur tigers" Russian China: "China and Russia have created a joint laboratory for the conservation and restoration of Amur tigers" Greater Asia: "A Russian-Chinese laboratory for the conservation of the Amur tiger has opened in China"

At the end of 2023, within the framework of cooperation between the A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution RAS and Nizhny Novgorod K. Minin State Pedagogical University, second year student Polina Nikolaevna Tyutyaeva completed a scientific internship at the Laboratory of Ecology of Aquatic Communities and Invasions under the guidance of A.A. Kotova, A.N. Neretina and P.G. Gharibyan. The material for the internship was hydrobiological samples taken from small reservoirs of the Nizhny Novgorod region in the fall of 2022 and 2023. During her internship, Polina Nikolaevna successfully mastered the identification of cladoceran crustaceans to the level of species or group of species using domestic and foreign identification keys based on light and scanning electron microscopy data. Polina Nikolaevna used the skills and abilities acquired at the Institute of Ecology and Evolution of the Russian Academy of Sciences when organizing a school research project on the topic “Cradocera (Crustacea: Cladocera) as an indicator of environmental changes in some small reservoirs of the Nizhny Novgorod region.” This work was carried out by Polina Korneva, a student of the Municipal Budgetary Educational Institution “School No. 130”, under the guidance of P.N. Tyutyaeva. On March 22, 2024, two Polinas successfully presented their project in the finals of the regional stage of the All-Russian competition “Great Challenges”, aimed at involving talented youth in scientific and technological activities. Based on the selection results, Polina Korneva advanced to the next (federal) stage of the competition and will defend her project at the Sirius educational center. The team of the Laboratory of Aquatic Communities and Invasions congratulates the young hydrobiologists on their victory and wishes them inspiration and luck in the study of Nizhny Novgorod water fleas!

Fig.1: Russian scientists began naming whales about 25 years ago. Photo: Anastasia Kunitsa About 400 bowhead and 400 gray whales live in the waters of the Sea of Okhotsk. And almost each of them has their own name or funny nickname. Thus, in whale catalogs compiled by mammal specialists, you can find “tailed animals” named Korovka (Cow), Tigrenok (Tiger Cub), Galaktika (Galaxy), Tetris (Tetris) and Dedushka (Grandfather). Komsomolskaya Pravda figured out how and why whales are given such unusual names. The color and scars as scientific data In Russia, whales have been given names since about 25 years ago. Then mammal experts began compiling whale catalogs and identifying gray whales. Teams of scientists from the  A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution are actively engaged in the study of cetaceans. Fig.2: Example from the whale catalog. Photo: provided by Anastasia Kunitsa The main way to study cetaceans is photo identification. Specialists photograph whales using drones or during expeditions, assign them a serial number, give them names and enter data into a whale catalog. Along with photographs, the animal's card also indicates the date and place of the first and last sighting. More detailed data is stored electronically in tables, explains Anastasia Kunitsa, a specialist in the study of mammals at the Institute of Ecology and Evolution of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Fig.3: Anastasia Kunitsa goes on expeditions to study gray whales. Photo: provided by Anastasia The easiest creatures to study and identify are bowhead and gray whales that live in the Sea of Okhotsk, as well as humpback whales in the Far East, as they have characteristic patterns on their bodies. It is these species that scientists most often give names to. Other types of whales, for example beluga whales or blue whales, rarely have color features, so it is much more difficult to distinguish between them. - Experts give names to whales primarily for convenience in communicating with each other. That is, in official documents and scientific publications we note that we saw whale number 123, and among ourselves we say: “Oh, Valera has arrived!” says Anastasia Kunitsa. - Scientists often name sea creatures after their loved ones. For example, I have a favorite gray whale – Matveyushka. He has a reddish coloring, so I named him in honor of my red-haired friend Matvey. We named one whale Brother Nikolai. Our volunteer really asked to name the sea creature in honor of his brother, but since Nikolai was already in the catalog, they gave him this unusual name,” says Anastasia Kunitsa. Fig.4: Korovka (Cow) has a characteristic scar that resembles the image of a cow. Photo: courtesy of IEE RAS But most often, scientists come up with funny nicknames based on associations with spots, scars or scratches on the body of sea creatures. - We have a gray whale, Tigrenok (Tiger Cub), who had tears on his back, possibly from ship propellers, that left scars in the form of even stripes. Bowhead whales have many interesting patterns and markings on their bodies. For example, Dedushka (Grandfather) got his name due to depigmentation, the so-called “gray hair”. Smurfik (Smurf) was named according to the same principle. His “gray hair” on the blades of his tail is very reminiscent of a gnome in a cap. Serdechko (Heart) has a scar right on the blowhole (the nostrils of a whale) that resembles an inverted heart, and Korovka (Cow) has a scar exactly like a cow,” explains Maria Slavina, a biologist at the Institute of Ecology and Evolution of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Fig.5: Dedushka (pictured left) got his name due to the depigmentation, the so-called “gray hair” on the upper part of the body. Smurfik (right) was given this name because the “gray hair” on his blades looks like a gnome. Photo: courtesy of IEE RAS Scientists from different research groups share data collected during whale identification in joint projects. The names of marine inhabitants rarely appear in scientific articles and publications. In reports, scientists usually indicate only the number of individuals that they were able to study during the season. But in some cases, individual whales do become celebrities and make headlines. Fig.6: Pomponchik (pompom) got its name thanks to the spots on its blowhole. Photo: courtesy of IEE RAS Fig.7: The whale named Most Zolotye Vorota (Golden Gate Bridge) has markings of the famous landmark on the right blade of its tail. Photo: courtesy of IEE RAS Fig.8: Lyagushka (frog) was named after an unusual scar on the left blade of its tail. Photo: courtesy of IEE RAS - This was the case with the female whale Varvara, on whom scientists installed a tracking sensor. In 2011, she migrated to Mexico and returned a year later. She traveled 200 thousand kilometers in one direction alone and set a mammal migration record that no one has yet broken, says Anastasia Kunitsa. Tourist attraction Nicknames for whales are also invented in other countries, but there is no single international system that would take into account the nicknames of all mammals. That is, they named the whale Valera in Russia, but if he migrated to Mexico, he could quite easily be nicknamed Miguel or Julio there. At the same time, there are separate international projects to study marine life. The most famous is HappyWhale. Tourists and travelers can upload to the site photographs of whales they have seen, along with a short description. The system processes the photo and sends information about whether anyone has seen this whale before. In the future, scientists will use this data to study populations of marine mammals. Travelers are also invited to become a guardian for the whale, give it a name and track its further movements on the website. To do this, you need to make a donation (the recommended amount, which is indicated on the website, is from 500 to 1000 dollars). Tourists also support research activities with funding. Fig.9: Tourists can upload photos of whales they see. Photo: screenshot from HappyWhale website - The project was invented by foreign scientists, but gradually our specialists joined it. In Russia, tourists most often manage to photograph humpback whales in the Far East. They love to show off their tails, which each have specific color patterns,” explains mammal specialist Anastasia Kunitsa. Fig.10: Humpback whales love to show tourists their tails. Photo: Kristinp Rau/HappyWhale In the Barents Sea, tour operators come up with names for whales to attract the attention of tourists. Thus, in Teriberka (a village in the Murmansk region), tour operators create their own whale catalogs. In local groups and chats, they periodically conduct voting among subscribers, and at the same time tell tourists about conscious observation of marine life and how not to harm them.

Fig.1: Two-week-old kittens of a domestic cat in the laboratory of the Chernogolovka Scientific Experimental Base This study tested the hypotheses that the discomfort calls of 2-week-old domestic cat kittens vary between individuals, contain sex cues, and may provide information to the mother about the physical health and potential of a given kitten to survive until the end of nursing. Body weight was also assessed as an indicator of the kittens' body condition. Since body weight depends on the size of the brood, the number of cubs in the brood was also taken into account. Additionally, since kittens' immunity may have been higher as a result of multiple paternity, this proxy for physical health was also considered in the study. The study was based on the idea that if it is not possible to raise an entire large litter, a mother cat could potentially redistribute resources in the form of milk, licking and warmth in favor of those kittens that have a higher chance of survival at the expense of those kittens that are weakened from diseases or physiological defects. We expected to find a relationship between the acoustic parameters of kitten calls and their subsequent survival to cessation of milk feeding, which could provide the mother with an honest indicator of the quality of the kitten's health and vitality. The cries of 57 two-week-old kittens were recorded during the blood collection procedure at the Chernogolovka Scientific Experimental Base. Of these, 53 kittens meowed, and 4 were silent. Of the 57 kittens, 47 survived to 90 days of age. However, the calls of kittens that survived and did not survive to 90 days of age did not differ in any acoustic parameter. Thus, the acoustic signs of sounds do not allow the mother to treat the kittens selectively, redistributing resources in favor of the stronger ones. Analysis of physical and acoustic parameters showed that the kitten's large body mass was the most important factor in its further survival and correlated with almost all acoustic parameters of calls. Litter size influenced body weight, with weight being highest in litters of 4 kittens, intermediate in litters of 5 kittens, and lowest in litters of 6–8 kittens. The presence of multiple paternity in the litter and the sex of the kitten did not affect body weight. Survival to 90 days was dependent on body weight. Body weight was lowest in kittens that did not survive to this age. Fig.2. Spectrograms show individual differences in the discomfort meows of 24 domestic cat kittens, 12 males (top two rows) and 12 females (bottom two rows). An audio file with sounds is available as Supplementary material for the article on the journal’s website. How can weaker kittens mask their low chances of survival by crying? Low-weight kittens increased their chances of survival by making calls that attracted increased attention from their mother. We found that the lower the kitten's body weight, the more frequent the calls, the longer the calls, the higher the energy quartiles, and the more calls contained nonlinear vocal phenomena. As has been shown previously for many mammalian species, such calls have increased attractiveness to adult caregivers of their young, and adults are less likely to ignore them. Fig.3. Comparison of observed and random variables attributing domestic cat kitten meows to a specific individual (a) and the correct sex (b). It was impossible to determine the sex of the kittens by their calls, and their identity could be determined with rather low accuracy. Interestingly, in another study, very clear differences between males and females were found in the meows of adult domestic cats at the Chernogolovka Scientific Experimental Base, while individuality was also low (Sedova et al., 2023, press release https://sev-in.ru/node/3323). The results of the study were published in the journal Behavioral Processes: Rutovskaya M.V., Volodin I.A., Naidenko S.V., Erofeeva M.N., Alekseeva G.S., Zhuravleva P.S., Volobueva K.A., Kim M.D., Volodina E.V., 2024. Relationship between acoustic traits of protesting cries of domestic kittens (Felis catus) and their individual chances for survival. Behavioural Processes, v. 216, 105009, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beproc.2024.105009