International survey is done

On March 18, 2019, a Russian scientific vessel Professor Kaganovsky with scientists from Russia, Canada, the U.S., Japan and South Korea on board returned to Vancouver, having accomplished their international expedition devoted to examining Pacific salmon.

According to CBC, since mid-February, 21 researchers gathered by a retired Canadian scientist, Richard Beamish, have made about 60 stops in different parts of the Gulf of Alaska where they have been studying the survival of fish in open waters during winter. The scientists conducted test fisheries, collected samples for further analysis, determined the most common salmon spices for that area and pioneered a new DNA testing method to predict a return rate and changes to salmon stocks. As a result, for example, they were surprised to find coho, considered the least abundant of the Pacific species, being the second-most frequently met in the test fisheries. “What is puzzling about coho salmon is they are considered to be a coastal species that remain near shore throughout their marine life,” says Fisheries and Oceans Canada researcher Chrys Neville quoted by Vancouver Sun. The scientists also surveyed plastic debris to define a level of pollution in the North Pacific. Their findings will lead to large-scale research, the conclusions of which will be published in future.

The vessel is now heading to the federal Fisheries Department’s Pacific Biological Station in Nanaimo where a tour and reception are organized for the expedition team. As reported by the Russian Federal Research Institute of Fisheries and Oceanography, on March 20, 2019, leaving international scientists behind, Professor Kaganovsky with a team of only Russian researchers will start the second part of its travel by putting out to sea in the direction of the Hawaiian–Emperor seamount chain to discover demersal fish stocks.