At the Walrus Day Russia exhibition and forum, guests of the Rosneft pavilion were told about the species diversity, distribution, behavioral and reproductive features of these pinnipeds. The lecture was given by a researcher from the Institute of Ecology and Evolution. ONE. Severtsova Svetlana Artemyeva.
He also shared his experience of participating in scientific expeditions and told interesting facts about walruses. At the end of the event, a thematic quiz on marine mammals was held. The winner of the competition presented the book “Rediscovering the Arctic”, dedicated to the 10th anniversary of Rosneft’s research in the Arctic.
In addition, the documentary film “Guardians of the North” shot by TV presenter and candidate of biological sciences Ivan Zatevakhin was presented to the visitors. The film is dedicated to Rosneft’s second extensive expedition to study and monitor walruses and polar bears in Franz Josef Land and the Novaya Zemlya archipelago. The discovery took place in 2021 and talked about the behavior and lifestyle of animals, as well as the work of scientists.
As Rosneft explained, the company has been conducting research on the size and characteristics of the population of the walrus subspecies in the Atlantic since 2015. During this time, work was carried out in the waters of the Kara and Laptev seas on the territory of the Nenets State Nature Reserve. Within the scope of the national “Ecology” project, extensive research on walruses in the Barents Sea was carried out.
In total, more than 200 biological samples were selected and analyzed during the expeditions, with 26 animals tagged with satellite transmitters. A detailed map of known walruses was created, their food sources were examined, and new hiding places for the animals were identified. During a one-off full-scale walrus count using unmanned aerial vehicles, more than 7,000 individuals were recorded for the first time. In addition, the largest concentration of walruses was discovered on the island of Eva-Liv (architect Franz Josef Land) – more than 2,000 animals.