National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration: “Higher water temperature takes a toll on metabolism”
Increased calorie needs… Unable to secure food due to ecosystem destruction
Study author: “Climate change is the cause… It also affects our livelihoods.”
Billions of snow crabs appear to have disappeared from Alaska in recent years due to rising water temperatures due to global warming.
According to CNN in the U.S. and The Guardian in the U.K. on the 21st (local time), the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) estimates that snow crabs in the Bering Sea in eastern Alaska suffered mass starvation because their caloric needs increased due to changes in water temperature, but they were not able to eat enough food to meet that requirement. published the research results.
According to research, snow crab is a cold-water species that lives in cold water. It can survive up to 12℃ in water, but is mostly found in areas where the water temperature is below 2℃.
Researchers found that during the 2018 ‘marine heatwave’ in Alaska’s Bering Sea, the amount of energy needed by snow crabs may have quadrupled compared to previous years. ‘Marine heat waves’, which occur when ocean temperatures remain abnormally high, threaten the survival of marine life and can disrupt the entire food chain.
The research team stated that it is highly likely that the increased water temperature damaged the snow crab’s metabolism and increased the amount of calories required. Additionally, it was estimated that as the Bering Sea ecosystem was destroyed due to marine heat waves, snow crabs had difficulty finding food and eventually were unable to keep up with the demand for calories.
NOAA stated that the cause of this phenomenon is climate change and that “the ocean absorbs 90% of the excess heat caused by global warming.” Scientists say temperatures in the Arctic have risen four times faster than temperatures in other regions.
The number of snow crabs in the Bering Sea has been gradually decreasing since 2021, and last year, the number plummeted by 10 million, leading to the suspension of snow crab fishing. The Guardian reported that the sharp decline in the number of snow crabs also took a toll on the income of Alaskan fishermen who made a living by trading them.
“Climate change is accelerating the decline in Alaskan snow crab populations, impacting our livelihoods,” said Cody Schwarski, study lead author and NOAA fisheries biologist. He also predicted that “as ice disappears from the ocean, snow crabs will move north and we probably won’t see many of them anymore in the eastern Bering Sea.”
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.