Ukrainian researchers will study whales and parasites in Southern Ocean (PHOTOS)

On December 8, Ukrainian scientists began an expedition to the Southern Ocean for about three months, the Ministry of Education and Science said.

“Karina Vishnyakova and Yulia Ivanchikova, representing the National Antarctic Research Center and the Ukrainian Research Center for Marine Ecology, set off from the port of Cape Town (South Africa) to the shores of Antarctica. Scientists will work on the Ukrainian trawler Sea of ​​the Commonwealth, which is fishing for Antarctic krill,” the Ministry of Education and Science noted, adding that the expedition will last until March 2021.

Researchers have the following tasks:

whales: study of their spatial distribution and replenishment of the photo catalog based on the Akademik Vernadsky station in 2018;

icefish: sampling to determine the content of persistent organic pollutants in its tissues;

Antarctic krill: study of differences in biochemical composition in different fishing areas;

parasites of commercial fish: study of their biodiversity as a factor influencing the dynamics of fish populations.

The fishing and exploration area includes the South Orkney Islands, South Shetland Islands, Bransfield Strait.

“Researchers get the opportunity to study the Southern Ocean even now, when there is not a single research vessel in Ukraine, and the fishing industry, with the help of scientists, can better predict fishing areas and future catches,” the ministry said.