First Findings of Invasive Snow Crab, <i>Chionoecetes opilio</i> (o. Fabricius, 1788) (Decapoda, Oregoniidae) in the Eastern Part of the Kara Sea

During the 89th cruise of the R/V Akademik Mstislav Keldysh in September-October 2022, a study of the bottom communities of the Kara Sea was carried out using the bottom trawl Sigsby and the ROV Videomodul, as well as plankton sampling usin Bongo net in order to register crab larvae in the water column. In the eastern part of the Kara Sea, in the section from the Voronin Trough towards the coast of Taimyr, starting from a depth of 490 m, single large individuals of the snow crab were found for the first time. At the same time, not a single crab larvae was caught, which indicates the penetration of the adult stages of the snow crab into these areas along the bottom. On the contrary, in the western part of the sea and in the Bay of Prosperity, high numbers of all size groups of snow crab at the bottom, as well as crab larvae in the water column were observed. Differences in the speed and nature of the introduction of the snow crab are explained by the contrast of the ice conditions in the western and eastern regions of the Kara Sea. Possibly, further development of the snow crab population in the east of the Kara Sea should be expected in connection with the tendencies for an increase in the duration of the ice-free period in the Arctic.