The first feeding seals this year were recorded off the Turkmen shores of the Caspian Sea. Zoologist and consultant of the Hazar Nature Reserve Alexander Shcherbina, who observes the animals every year, told the Turkmenportal correspondent about this.

The first migrating seals of about 20 individuals this year were spotted on April 25 abeam the Avaza National Tourist Zone, the zoologist notes.

“The life of a Caspian seal has a fairly clear schedule. After the birth of the offspring, which occurs on the ice and islands of the Northern Caspian, their migration begins to the warm waters of the Middle and Southern Caspian, where there is a richer food supply. This is where they feed, that is, restore vitality and replenish fat reserves,” says A.A. Shcherbina.

In Turkmenistan, the seasonal habitats of the Caspian seal are the territories of the Khazar State Nature Reserve: Osushnye Islands and the Ogurdzhaly Nature Reserve.

Seals once lived in large numbers in the Caspian Sea. For example, at the beginning of the 20th century there were up to 1 million individuals, but now, according to various estimates, there are from 43 to 66 thousand.

Since 2011, the Caspian seal has been listed in the Red Book of Turkmenistan and is subject to state protection. The Khazar Reserve carries out systematic work to study the state of the Caspian seal population for its further protection and conservation.

We previously reported that a record number of flamingos were registered in the Turkmen sector of the Caspian Sea.