The Center for Study and Recovery of the Caspian Seal, led by its creator Aselle Tasmagambatova, and the Norwegian Institute for Bioeconomic Research arranged one of the biggest foreign excursions in the Caspian Sea in February.

The Saudi Arabian King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, a Tasmagambetova Institute member since 2022, also sponsored the academics.

Experts from the USA, Norway, Great Britain, France, Saudi Arabia, and Kazakhstan went on a trip to gather the most data on the Red Book-listed Caspian seal.

Garbage, illicit killing, global warming, and illness endanger these species.

“Caspian seals mate, give birth, feed, and raise their pups only on ice. Thus, global warming, including the already recorded decline in water levels, will seriously affect the most important home for seals,” says CAIER creator Aselle Tasmagambetova. The expedition's Saudi Arabian allies supplied devices to help experts study seals' climate adaptations. It's crucial. Oil, industrial and heavy metals, farming chemicals, nuclear waste, sewage, and domestic waste have poisoned the seal area, preventing up to 70% of females from reproducing. "The animals may have to find new homes," adds Tasmagambetova. The biologist says 70 seals have been fixed since the seal recovery center in Aktau, Kazakhstan opened two years ago. “About half were nabbed by illicit networks, so this is another severe issue that needs to be addressed,” says Tasmagambetova.

Dr. Tommy Nyman, a voyage participant from NIBIO Svanhovd Molecular Center, compares seals in the Caspian Sea to those in Lake Saimaa in Finland. The Saimaa seal population has grown from 150 in the 1980s to just over 400 today, while the Caspian seal population is dwindling. Norway activist Tasmagambetova believes new fishing net limitations are to blame.

The trip will require experts to analyze a lot of data on Caspian Sea species' habitats and maladies and pathogens. But it's clear that all Caspian nations must form deals to protect the sea's marine life and ecosystem.

The Center for Study and Rescue of the Caspian Seal can coordinate rare animal rescues.

Aselel Tasmagambetova stated that such trips aim to reverse the seal population decline by using all analyses, studies, and gathered material to create a focused inteational policy within the Tehran Convention.