More than 2,500 endangered Caspian seal corpses were discovered on a beach in southern Russia on Sunday. Scientists claim the animals perished due to “natural reasons,” but environmental watchdogs blame natural gas pollution.
The Caspian Environmental Protection Center’s Zaur Gapizov told The Associated Press that the seals most likely passed away a few weeks ago and that there was no evidence to suggest that they were killed or captured in fishing nets.
Approximately 700 dead seals were discovered off the Caspian Sea shore on Saturday, but within a day, the number sharply climbed.
Organic substance Hypoxia is most likely to blame, according to Svetlana Radionova of the natural resources watchdog Rosprirodnadzor, and scientists are looking into whether natural gas emissions in the Caspian could be the cause of the low oxygen levels.
This is not the first time that endangered creatures have died in large numbers; a similar occurrence occurred in December 2021, and it was discovered that those animals also perished due to natural causes. A number of the remains were discovered at Yuzbash and near the mouths of the Sulak and Shurinka rivers, according to posts posted on Telegram.
According to their appearance, the seals passed away approximately two weeks ago, and the Dagestan Ministry of Natural Resources reported that there were “no traces of violent death, no residues of fishing lines.”
Scientists are still examining the bodies, though.
Due to a more than 70% population loss in the 20th century, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) listed Caspian seals as Endangered in 2008.
Overhunting, habitat destruction, and climate change are to blame for the reduction.
Following this occurrence, the Dagestan ministry stated that between 270,000 and 300,000 Caspian seals are still present in the area, which is a constant quantity.
Over 300 Caspian seals died in a major incident a year ago.
The bodies washed up on a section of coast close to the harbor city of Türkmenbaşy, according to eyewitness accounts.
In January, sailors from the naval forces found a lot of dead seals. There were hundreds, a border guard from Turkmenistan told Radio Azatlyk.
Additionally, there are a lot of dead fish and birds along the coast. Our superiors have ordered us to keep quiet. Scientists from Ashgabat are investigating the reason of the seals’ demise to rule out the possibility of a virus or factory trash placed nearby.
According to the Russian news source Interfax, biologist Vyacheslav Bisikov, who was engaged in the examinations, determined that the seals’ organs exhibited no symptoms of heavy metal or pesticide toxicity.
[sourcelink link=”https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/more-than-2500-dead-seals-wash-up-russias-caspian-coast-2022-12-05/”]
