Overview
- Regional teams documented carcasses along shores of Makhachkala, Karabudakhkentsky, Kayakentsky and Derbentsky districts, with shoreline inspections ongoing.
- Dagestan’s natural resources ministry said it has notified responsible agencies and requested measures while continuing daily monitoring.
- The Russian Academy of Sciences reports examinations so far do not reveal why the animals died, although veterinarians point to drowning and pollutant tests returned levels within norms.
- Researchers say deeper virological and microbiological analyses are not possible because the carcasses are estimated to be two to three weeks old.
- Scientists describe such late‑autumn die‑offs as recurrent during migration and note the 2022 event that yielded about 2,500 carcasses when avian influenza was detected in some seals, adding that pinpointing causes would require large, multinational at‑sea studies.