The results of the spring stage of the expedition of the Shirshov Institute of Oceanology of the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS), which took place in the second half of April 2026, confirmed the ability of Black Sea ecosystems to self-regenerate and maintain a natural balance. The aim of the work, carried out by staff from the Laboratory of Ecology of Coastal Benthic Communities of the IO RAS, was to monitor coastal ecosystems.

During the expedition, samples of soil, benthic organisms, and water were collected in the area of ​​the Anapa municipality. The Analytical Laboratory of the IO RAS will determine the concentrations of pollutants in these samples to assess the long-term consequences of man-made accidents and the overall anthropogenic impact. Near the village of Dzhemete, traces of oil contamination were discovered on the seabed, in shellfish, and in live crustaceans.

"Nevertheless, during sampling, we encountered live mollusks, jellyfish, ctenophores, crustaceans, fish, and dolphins. These are common inhabitants of the coastal sands of Anapa. Their high activity indicates the normal course of seasonal processes in this area, one of the most affected by the fuel oil spill," noted Galina Kolyuchkina, PhD in Biology, Senior Researcher at the IO RAS, and team leader of the "Black Sea 2026" expedition.

Biologists also collected meiobenthos samples to analyze pseudolittoral and interstitial water communities on the beaches of Anapa and Gelendzhik Bay. The structure and spatial organization of algal bacterial biofilms on various substrates and in different areas were analyzed. A digital photographic database was created demonstrating the structural features of living biofilms, the majority of which during this period are diatoms forming tubular colonies.

Soil and water samples were also collected, and hydrological and hydrochemical parameters were measured at the Gelendzhik Carbon Test Site. Using the Gnom X and Gnom Pro Vector submersibles, researchers from the Underwater Video Equipment Laboratory of the Shirshov Institute of Oceanology of RAS inspected the pier piles of the Southern Branch of the Shirshov Institute of Oceanology of the Russian Academy of Sciences for biologists to analyze the composition of the fouling. Experimental plates were also installed there to study the composition and dynamics of the fouling community.

The April leg of the "Black Sea 2026" expedition was the first in a series of studies by the Institute of Oceanology of the Russian Academy of Sciences (IO RAS) covering the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus. At the end of June, biologists plan to expand the research geography to the Bugayskaya Spit and the Tuapse region, as well as continue long-term monitoring of benthic communities and assessment of the trophic structure of coastal ecosystems, as well as study alien invasive species.