A Mexican research vessel carrying at least 22 scientists on a 14,000-mile voyage to study and evaluate the state of fishing resources on the Pacific coast of Central America crossed the Panama Canal on Saturday, October 20.

[caption id="attachment_89844" align="alignleft" width="300"] The research team leaving  Progreso[/caption]

The United Nations Organization for Food and Agriculture (FAO) said that the ship left the port of Progreso on the Mexican Caribbean coast on September 17 with 22 scientists from Mexico and Central America on board.

The specialists "will collect scientific information on fishery resources, in addition to facilitating oceanographic characterization and its relationship with the distribution and abundance of biodiversity," said the UN, whose regional headquarters are located in the Panamanian capital.

The Research Ship "Dr. Jorge Carranza Fraser" will finish the mission on November 27 in the Mexican city of Mazatlan, located on the Pacific coast.

The voyage is an initiative promoted by the Government of Mexico through the National Institute of Fisheries and Aquaculture