Fish population is recovering in the Black Sea after the explosion of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power station
Date: 2024-08-29 Author: Nazar Litvin Categories: REGIONS
The large number of fish that is currently observed in the Black Sea near Odessa may indicate that after the terrorist attack on the dam of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power station, the population has recovered and increased significantly. This was reported by the head of the public organization "Green Leaf", ecologist Vladislav Balinsky, who has been observing the Odessa Gulf for many years.
"I have never seen such a large number of mullet here in the entire history of my observations, since the early 2000s. Mullet in the Black Sea is at least six species of fish. Loban is the largest of them," Balinsky said.
He showed a school of the native singul, as well as gostronos and mullet on his video.
"At the same time, a large mullet is cautious and does not allow you to approach it from above - you need to dive and end up on the same "horizon" with it or lie on the bottom," the ecologist says.
According to him, hunters use a dummy mullet and sometimes lie in wait for the fish for hours, holding their breath at the bottom.
"A very interesting and difficult object for sport underwater hunting. Often, even when fatally wounded, the fish breaks free and quickly rushes away. The Black Sea mullet is a very tasty commercial fish, which is always in demand...", Balinsky explains.
He also notes that the Black Sea red mullet or sultanka is a bottom fish with interesting behavior. It constantly digs its antennae in the soil, raising clouds of turbidity. This year, the number of industrial sultanka is also noteworthy. Horse mackerel, Odessa goby, which is a collective name for about ten species of bottom territorial fish, is observed. "Gobies in the Odessa Gulf are also quickly restoring their populations after the ecocide as a result of the explosion of the Kakhovka dam," the ecologist states.
At the same time, he warns that very high concentrations of heavy metal ions, pesticides and other toxic substances have been found in some aquatic organisms.
"This indicates long-term consequences of the Kakhovka sabotage... Also, the year-round discharge of the entire volume of wastewater has recently greatly complicated the ecological situation of the vulnerable Odessa Gulf. Therefore, I would advise to refrain from eating at least local mussels and rapana for now," the specialist says.
As evidence of the unfavorable ecological situation in the Odessa Gulf, he showed a gray gudgeon (sea mouse), which he found dead. This fish is listed in the Red Book of Ukraine.
"Constant fires as a result of the war and large-scale global warming are changing the landscape of the entire Northern Black Sea region. Most of the Odessa region generally falls into the climatic conditions of a semi-desert. The sea significantly softens the microclimate of Odessa, improves air circulation," Balinsky added.
The ecological situation in the Black Sea due to the terrorist attack at the Kakhovka hydroelectric power station
On the night of June 6, 2023, Russian occupiers blew up the dam of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power station, which caused a large-scale man-made disaster. The artificial flood flooded dozens of settlements on the right and left banks of the Dnieper, the water tore off thousands of tons of soil along with all living creatures, plants, and the like. All this ended up in the Black Sea, where water pollution and large-scale freezing processes were recorded.
In July 2024, biologist Vladislav Balinsky announced that he had observed the recovery of certain populations of marine life, in particular the Black Sea silverside, anchovy, and mullet.
"I have never seen such a large number of mullet here in the entire history of my observations, since the early 2000s. Mullet in the Black Sea is at least six species of fish. Loban is the largest of them," Balinsky said.
He showed a school of the native singul, as well as gostronos and mullet on his video.
"At the same time, a large mullet is cautious and does not allow you to approach it from above - you need to dive and end up on the same "horizon" with it or lie on the bottom," the ecologist says.
According to him, hunters use a dummy mullet and sometimes lie in wait for the fish for hours, holding their breath at the bottom.
"A very interesting and difficult object for sport underwater hunting. Often, even when fatally wounded, the fish breaks free and quickly rushes away. The Black Sea mullet is a very tasty commercial fish, which is always in demand...", Balinsky explains.
He also notes that the Black Sea red mullet or sultanka is a bottom fish with interesting behavior. It constantly digs its antennae in the soil, raising clouds of turbidity. This year, the number of industrial sultanka is also noteworthy. Horse mackerel, Odessa goby, which is a collective name for about ten species of bottom territorial fish, is observed. "Gobies in the Odessa Gulf are also quickly restoring their populations after the ecocide as a result of the explosion of the Kakhovka dam," the ecologist states.
At the same time, he warns that very high concentrations of heavy metal ions, pesticides and other toxic substances have been found in some aquatic organisms.
"This indicates long-term consequences of the Kakhovka sabotage... Also, the year-round discharge of the entire volume of wastewater has recently greatly complicated the ecological situation of the vulnerable Odessa Gulf. Therefore, I would advise to refrain from eating at least local mussels and rapana for now," the specialist says.
As evidence of the unfavorable ecological situation in the Odessa Gulf, he showed a gray gudgeon (sea mouse), which he found dead. This fish is listed in the Red Book of Ukraine.
"Constant fires as a result of the war and large-scale global warming are changing the landscape of the entire Northern Black Sea region. Most of the Odessa region generally falls into the climatic conditions of a semi-desert. The sea significantly softens the microclimate of Odessa, improves air circulation," Balinsky added.
The ecological situation in the Black Sea due to the terrorist attack at the Kakhovka hydroelectric power station
On the night of June 6, 2023, Russian occupiers blew up the dam of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power station, which caused a large-scale man-made disaster. The artificial flood flooded dozens of settlements on the right and left banks of the Dnieper, the water tore off thousands of tons of soil along with all living creatures, plants, and the like. All this ended up in the Black Sea, where water pollution and large-scale freezing processes were recorded.
In July 2024, biologist Vladislav Balinsky announced that he had observed the recovery of certain populations of marine life, in particular the Black Sea silverside, anchovy, and mullet.
