Participation of Armenia in the International Life Barcode Consortium (IBOL) is reporting its first results
In the framework of the "Memorandum of Understanding between the International Barcode of Life Consortium and the Science Committee of the Republic of Armenia" of July 2019, an agreement on financial obligations was signed between the mentioned organizations in February 2020, defining the scope activities, commitments and responsibilities within the MoU.
Armenia is represented in the iBOL Consortium's Science Committee by two specialists at the same time: Academician-Secretary of the Department of Natural Sciences of NAS RA, Head of YSU Chair of Genetics and Cytology Rouben Aroutiounian and Director of the Scientific Center of Zoology and Hydroecology of NAS RA, Professor Bardukh Gabrielyan.
As a result of the agreement, two international projects are already being implemented in our country, in which the Armenian side is actively involved. The Caucasus Barcode of Life (CaBOL) program, funded by the German Ministry of Education and Research, has become part of the iBOL Global Scientific Consortium. The Caucasus Barcode of Life (CaBOL) program involves a number of scientific and educational institutions in Germany, Armenia and Georgia. The goal of the project is to establish an Biodiversity Center, which will collect the rich biodiversity animals, plant species and plants of the Caucasus and create a database. Yerevan State University, Scientific Center of Zoology and Hydroecology of the National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Armenia are involved in the program from Armenia. In 2020, the specialists of the Scientific Center of Zoology and Hydroecology of the National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Armenia, the head of the laboratory Mark Kalashyan, Marina Dalakyan, as well as the specialists of the Department of Zoology of Yerevan State University carried out large-scale field work. The laboratory processing of the samples collected in Armenia will be carried out mainly in the laboratory of the Chair of Zoology of Yerevan State University under the direction of Marine Arakelyan, Head of the Chair, Astghik Ghazaryan, Sargis Aghayan. The CaBOL database will be an important tool for implementing public measures to conserve Armenia's rich biodiversity.
The Planetary Inventory of Life (LIFEPLAN - A Planetary Inventory of Life) is a project designed to carry out worldwide biodiversity research using modern methods. The leading organizations of the project are the University of Helsinki and the Swedish Agricultural University. Working groups have been set up in more than a hundred countries under their leadership. A working group has been formed in Armenia (headed by M. Kalashyan), which includes specialists from Yerevan State University, Scientific Center of Zoology, Hydroecology of the National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Armenia, Institute of Botany of the National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Armenia. An agreement has been signed between the cooperating parties. All organizations received some modern equipment. The works envisaged by the program are planned to start in 2021 from March, during which the received devices will be put into operation.
Sorting the material for barcoding in YSU
Fieldwork