Scientific legacy of Leonid Heorhiiovych Manilo: main research directions and contribution to the development of modern ichthyology

Eugenia Ulyura,https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2439-4134

Nina Petrenko,https://orcid.org/0009-0007-3026-8840

National Museum of Natural History of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (Kyiv, Ukraine)

Cite as

Ulyura, E., & Petrenko N. (2026). Scientific legacy of Leonid Heorhiiovych Manilo: main research directions and contribution to the development of modern ichthyology. GEO&BIO, 28, 143-154. [Ukrainian, with English summary]

doi: https://doi.org/10.53452/gb2812

pdf: G&B №28-2026_143-154_Ulyura.pdf

Abstract

This paper presents a comprehensive analysis of the scientific and museum legacy of one of the leading contemporary Ukrainian ichthyologists, Candidate of Biological Sciences, Senior Researcher at the National Museum of Natural History of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine — Leonid Heorhiiovych Manilo (1953–2024), whose scientific activity constituted an important stage in the development of studies on the ichthyofauna of marine and freshwater ecosystems. The article highlights the main directions of his research, including systematics and taxonomy of fishes, studies of biodiversity and the structure of aquatic biocenoses, as well as investigations of the ichthyofauna of the western Indian Ocean, the Azov–Black Sea region, and Antarctica. It is demonstrated that the scholar’s scientific contribution is characterised by a wide geographical scope, an integrative approach, and a high level of generalization of empirical material. Particular attention is paid to his distinctive and recognisable methodological approach, combining detailed morphological analysis with biogeographical interpretation, which subsequently became a foundation of his research. Of special value are his studies devoted to the genera Parapercis Bleeker, 1863, Epigonus Rafinesque, 1810, representatives of Gobiidae G. Cuvier, 1816, and other taxonomically challenging groups, where L. H. Manilo applied detailed comparative morphometric analysis to refine diagnostic species characters. Considerable attention is given to his contribution to the development of ichthyological collections in museum institutions, particularly to the formation of representative collections comprising materials from various biogeographic regions of the world—from the Black and Azov Sea basins to the southern latitudes of the World Ocean. These collections include both common and rare species and serve as an important basis for taxonomic and faunistic studies, as well as for modern systematic revisions. It is emphasised that the researcher’s publications significantly contributed to a deeper understanding of the structure of ichthyofauna, the dynamics of its changes, and the processes of biodiversity formation in aquatic ecosystems. His role in the development of international scientific collaboration and in the integration of Ukrainian ichthyological research into the global scientific community is also highlighted. The scientific legacy of the scholar is regarded as an important addition to modern ichthyology.

Key words

ichthyology, Leonid Manilo, National Museum of Natural History, expeditions, collections

Correspondence to: Eugenia Ulyura; National Museum of Natural History of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, 15 Bohdana Khmelnytskoho Street, Kyiv 01054, Ukraine; e-mail: ulyura@ukr.net

Article info

Submitted: 28.04.2026. Revised: 15.05.2026. Accepted: 25.05.2026

References

Abramov, A. A., & Manilo, L. G. (1987). Epigonus angustifrons sp. n., a new cardinalfish (Perciformes, Apogonidae) from the submarine ridges of the subtropical zone of the Indian Ocean. Bulletin of the Moscow Society of Naturalists. Biological Section, 92(2), 45–48. [Russian]

Bezrukov, V. F., Vergolyas, M. R., & Manilo, L. G. (2006). Cytogenetic manifestations of genome instability in Antarctic fishes. Visnyk Ukrainskoho tovarystva henetykiv i selektsioneriv, 4(2), 187–192. [Russian]

Carvalho, M. R. de, Stehmann, M. F. W., & Manilo, L. G. (2002). Torpedo adenensis, a new species of electric ray from the Gulf of Aden, with comments on nominal species of Torpedo from the western Indian Ocean. American Museum Novitates, 3369, 1–34.

Khyzhniak, S. V., Voitsitsky, V. M., Druzhcheruchenko, O. H., Manilo, L. H., & Pavlovych A. V. (2006). Elemental composition of blood serum in Antarctic fishes. In: Modern Problems of Science and Education, Proceedings of the 7th International Interdisciplinary Scientific and Practical Conference (June 25 – July 2, 2006, Simeiz). [Ukrainian]

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Manilo, L. G. (1990). A new species of the genus Parapercis (Mugiloididae) from the area of the Maldives Islands. Journal of Ichthyology, 30(6), 1016–1019. [Russian]

Manilo, L. G. (1992). New records of fishes on the shelf and upper slope of the western part of the Indian Ocean. Journal of Ichthyology, 32(5), 20–26. [Russian]

Manilo, L. G. (1994). Addition to the fauna of shelf fishes of the Arabian Sea and the western part of the Indian Ocean. Vestnik Zoologii, 1, 44–47. [Russian]

Manilo, L. G. (2003). The distribution of the coastal fishes of the Arabian Sea and ichthyogeography division of a northwest part of the Indian Ocean. Vestnik Zoologii, 37(5): 31–39. [Russian]

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Manilo, L. G. (2011). Features of distributing gobies species (Actinopterygii, Perciformes) depending on the salinity in marine and estuary waters of the Azov–Black Sea basin. Vestnik Zoologii, 45(3): 231–240. [Russian]

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Manilo, L. G. (2025). Collections of fish of the family Labridae in the National Museum of Natural History (Ukraine): species, their distribution and conservation status. GEO&BIO, 27, 169–180. [Ukrainian], https://doi.org/10.53452/gb2713

Manilo, L. G., & Bogorodsky, S. V. (2003). Taxonomic composition, diversity and distribution of coastal fishes of the Arabian Sea. Journal of Ichthyology, 43(1), 75–82.

Manilo, L. G., & Demchenko V. O. (2021). Alien fish species of Atlantic–Mediterranean origin in the Sea of Azov within the waters of Ukraine (a review for the last 50 years). GEO&BIO, 23, 131–142. [Ukrainian], https://doi.org/10.15407/gb2311

Manilo, L. G., & Movchan, Yu. V. (2019). History of creation of the exhibition at Zoological Museum of the National Museum of Natural History of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine. Zbirnyk prats Zoolohichnoho muzeiu, 50, 3–15. [Ukrainian]

Manilo, L. G., & Pankov, A. V. (2004). First record of the green puntius Puntius semifasciolatus (Cyprinidae) in the inland waters of Russia. Journal of Ichthyology, 44(2), 281–282. [Russian]

Manilo, L. G., & Peskov, V. N. (2012). Morphological divergence and diagnostic characters of the goby Neogobius eurycephalus (Kessler, 1874) and the goby N. cephalargoides Pinchuk, 1976 (Perciformes, Gobiidae). Journal of Ichthyology, 52(1), 26–33. [Russian]

Manilo, L. G., Snigirov, S., Tkachenko, P., & Zamorov, V. (2022). The Atlantic–Mediterranean fish assemblage and alien fishes in the north-western part of the Black Sea within the waters of Ukraine (review for the last 50 years). GEO&BIO, 22, 150–165. [Ukrainian], https://doi.org/10.15407/gb2212

Manilo, L. G., Ignatyev, S. M., & Chesalin, M. V. (2009). The state of the coastal ichthyofauna and features of the biology of mass species of fishes in the area of the Ukrainian Antarctic station Akademik Vernadsky. Rybnoe khozyaystvo Ukrainy, 5, 7–23. [Russian]

Novitskyi, R. O., Manilo, L. G., Peskov, V. M., & Gasso V. Ya. (2023). Spread and ecomorphological modifications of Ponticola ratan (Gobiiformes: Gobiidae) in the Dnieper reservoirs (Ukraine). Hydrobiological Journal, 59(2), 69–84.

Vergolyas, M. R., Bezrukov, V. F., & Manilo, L. G. (2006). Comparative characteristics of the blood formula of Antarctic fishes. Factors of experimental evolution of organisms. Zbirnyk naukovykh prats, 3, 185–188. [Russian]

Vergolyas, M., Bezrukov, V., & Manilo, L. (2008). Genome instability of three Antarctic fish species. Terra Nostra: 23 Internationale Polartagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Polarforschung, 98.

Voitsitsky, V. M., Khizhnyak, S. V., & Manilo, L. G. (2006). Macro- and microelemental composition of the Antarctic fish blood serum. Ukrainskyi antarktychnyi zhurnal, 4–5, 246–250.

Voitsitsky, V. M., Rodionova, N. K., Khizhnyak, S. V., & Manilo, L. G. (2008). Hematologic indices of Antarctic fishes. Hydrobiological Journal, 44(1), 70–79. [Russian]