Scientists Say Arctic, Sea Ice Levels Linked With , Gray Whale Mass Die-Off Events.
LiveScience reports that scientists may have determined
the reason behind a series of mass deaths among
gray whales in the northeastern Pacific Ocean. .
According to a new study, scientists have linked recent
major mass mortality events with Arctic sea ice levels. .
According to a new study, scientists have linked recent
major mass mortality events with Arctic sea ice levels. .
Three major die-off events have
impacted gray whales off the coast
of North America since the 1980s.
Those events reduced the whale population
by 15% to 25% each time they occurred,
killing over 2,000 gray whales.
In 2019, the latest die-off event
started with over 70 gray whales washing
ashore dead in only six months.
Since then, a total of 688 are known
to have died, while the cause of
the event has remained unclear.
These are extreme population swings
that we did not expect to see in a large,
long-lived species like gray whales, Joshua Stewart, Study lead author and assistant professor at Oregon State University's Marine Mammal Institute, via LiveScience.
According to the new study, published in the journal 'Science,' changing conditions and fluctuations in sea ice levels in the Arctic may be responsible for these events. .
Sea ice cover and the amount of
available food may dictate how
the gray whale population fares. .
When the availability of their prey
in the Arctic is low and the whales
cannot reach their feeding areas because
of sea ice, the gray whale population
experiences rapid and major shocks, Joshua Stewart, Study lead author and assistant professor at Oregon State University's Marine Mammal Institute, via LiveScience.
When the availability of their prey
in the Arctic is low and the whales
cannot reach their feeding areas because
of sea ice, the gray whale population
experiences rapid and major shocks, Joshua Stewart, Study lead author and assistant professor at Oregon State University's Marine Mammal Institute, via LiveScience