Ukrainian biologist arrested. Antarctic krill scandal in the background

Leonid Pshenichnov, a 70-year-old marine biologist and Antarctic expert, has been arrested in occupied Crimea. Russian authorities accuse him of treason, referring to his support for plans to establish new protected areas in the Southern Ocean. At stake is Antarctic krill and its enormous ecological and economic importance.

Arrest over Antarctica

For four decades, Leonid Pshenichnov has studied marine ecosystems around Antarctica. The scientist was about to travel to Hobart, Australia, to attend a conference on the protection of natural resources of the far south when he was detained by Russian security forces. According to the Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group (KHPG), the biologist faces 12 to 20 years in prison.

Representatives of Ukraine’s National Antarctic Research Centre accused Russian authorities of unlawful action and called Pshenichnov the first Antarctic political prisoner. The charge of treason directly relates to Russia’s ambitions for economic expansion in the Southern Ocean.

Russia’s “no” to marine protected areas

The Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR), of which Pshenichnov is a member, is responsible for implementing a system to protect Southern Ocean fauna from overexploitation. The body sets and allocates catch limits for krill and various fish species and works on establishing protected zones around Antarctica. At last year’s CCAMLR conference, Pshenichnov proposed the creation of a new marine protected area, which met with strong opposition from Russia and China.

The Russian Federation maintains that establishing new protected areas in the Southern Ocean threatens its economic interests and national security. In a document provided to Australian media by Vasyl Myroshnychenko, Ukraine’s ambassador, the official reason for the arrest was stated as “defection to the enemy” and “using his research to undermine Russian krill fishing near the Antarctic Peninsula.”

The Australian delegation at the CCAMLR conference in Hobart unequivocally condemned Russia’s actions, calling them unacceptable. “We call on Russia to put an end to this situation and to ensure that Pshenichnov can freely represent Ukraine in CCAMLR in the future,” the official declaration reads.

Antarctic krill as a source of international conflict

Euphausia superba, or Antarctic krill, is a species of small crustaceans that has attracted global attention in recent years. These creatures, measuring barely 60 mm, form the base of the entire Southern Ocean food chain, serving as the main diet for whales, seals, and penguins. As one of the most abundant organisms on Earth, they are also an exceptionally important natural carbon reservoir – up to 30,000 individuals can be found in just one cubic meter of water. A 2019 study published in Nature Communications found that krill absorbs up to 39 million tons of CO2 annually.

Unfortunately, Antarctic krill has also become the target of intensive industrial exploitation. As a seemingly inexhaustible source of protein-rich biomass, it is caught in vast quantities for the production of dietary supplements and animal feed. This mass exploitation, combined with climate change reducing populations of cold-adapted species, is increasingly destabilizing the Southern Ocean ecosystem.

Dr. So Kawaguchi from the Australian Antarctic Program warns that the reduction of krill populations will have a catastrophic impact on penguin colonies that settle along coasts rich in small crustaceans. “Decreased food availability, caused by changes in krill distribution, will also affect the reproduction and survival of whales and other predators,” the scientist emphasizes. Another problem is collisions between whales and ocean trawlers that follow the same routes.

Scientists agree that Antarctic krill must be protected for the sake of the stability of the entire Southern Ocean ecosystem. However, CCAMLR makes all its decisions by consensus, and opposition from Russia and China prevents the expansion of protected areas.

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main photo credit: Torsten Dederichs/Unsplash