The project is being implemented by the Central Asian Institute of Environmental Research (CAIER), which has been working on the problem of environmental degradation in the Caspian Sea for 10 years and is conducting research to preserve the Caspian seal population.

During this time, 9 expeditions were conducted with the participation of international scientists in the field of marine biodiversity. The data from these research works showed the catastrophic ecological situation in the Caspian Sea and became the basis for including the Caspian seal in the Red Book of Kazakhstan.

— To study the causes of the decline in the Caspian seal population, access to scientific research is required, many of which are currently fragmented and in closed access. Over 10 years of research work, scientists at our institute have conducted unique analyses and collected an extensive database. We plan to create an open big date that will allow domestic and international scientists to combine efforts to save the Caspian seal and the entire Caspian region, — says Asel Tasmagambetova, ecologist, founder of the Central Asian Institute of Environmental Research.

In early February, the latest CAIER research expedition to the Caspian Sea was completed, which included scientists from Great Britain, Kazakhstan and the USA, as well as a film crew from the international BBC television channel.

During the expedition, veterinary assistance was provided to sick Caspian seals, water and snow samples were taken, and a number of unique analyses were carried out.

The animals are also equipped with lightweight biometric tracking sensors.

The Caspian seal monitoring devices were created by Khaled Salama, a professor of electrical and computer engineering at KAUST, Dr. Eckard Le Roux, and Dr. Altynai Kaidarova, chief scientist at the Caspian Seal Research and Rehabilitation Center (an institution based at CAIER).

The sensors, which include three satellite modules and one LoRa module, allow for minimal interference with the seals’ natural behavior. This approach provided accurate data on temperature, pressure/depth, GPS location, speed, orientation, and conductivity without significantly affecting the animals’ behavioral patterns.

In turn, Professor Daniel Costa, a leading global pinniped researcher who took part in the CAIER expedition, believes that the analyses carried out will make a significant contribution to the study of the decline of the Caspian seal population:

— The Costa Lab enthusiastically collected a variety of biological samples from Caspian seals during the 2025 expedition. We look forward to the results of the analysis, which will help us further understand blood volume, stress physiology, feeding behavior, energetic costs of reproduction, hematological parameters, milk composition, and much more. We are grateful for the invitation to participate in this expedition and are excited to continue studying the ecology and health of this unique species, — the institute said in a statement.

At the moment, all samples have been sent to a high-tech laboratory for testing. It is planned that the results of the analyses will be included in a single database on the life of the Caspian seal.

Let us recall that earlier the Ministry of Agriculture announced plans to breed Caspian seals .

https://www.inform.kz/ru/otkrituyu-bazu-dannih-okaspiyskom-tyulene-sozdadut-v-kazahstane-ebb12b