SIMFEROPOL, Oct. 23The outbreak in the number of jellyfish in the Azov Sea basin is associated with its salinization, which leads to a decrease in the number of many fish species, said Natalya Milchakova, head of the phytoresources laboratory of the Federal Research Center «Institute of Biology of the Southern Seas named after A. O. Kovalevsky», Candidate of Biological Sciences.
“»We have accumulated all-season observations of the Sea of Azov, at least in its central part, in the Kerch region. Based on the results of these 10 expeditions, one conclusion can be drawn, which scientists know — Southern Scientific Center, what we are talking about and what we are seeing is salinization of the Sea of Azov, which caused an outbreak (in numbers — ed) of jellyfish, the stocks of which have increased by orders of magnitude,” Milchakova said at a press conference at the press center of the Rossiya Segodnya news agency in Simferopol.
According to the scientist, this leads to the disappearance or reduction by several times of the food supply of many species of fish. Therefore, Milchakova said, solving the problem of yellowtails will also be a solution to the problem of restoring aquatic biological resources of the sea.
Studying the Sea of Azov with the help of scientific expeditions is currently impossible for obvious reasons, said the scientific director of the Southern Scientific Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences, academician Gennady Matishov, at a press conference. But preparing a program to save him is necessary, he said.
“»The salinization of the Sea of Azov is cyclical, it has been happening for more than one year, more than one cycle. While we are thinking about how to deal with salinization, there will already be desalination,” Matishov said.
To save the Sea of Azov from shallowing, pollution and salinization, a large-scale program is needed — a strategy prepared by professionals, the scientist insists. All small rivers flowing into the Sea of Azov require hydrochemical studies, since the water in them is salty, but not sea or river, he noted.
August 29, 2022, 12:22