The reason why billions of crabs have disappeared around Alaska
Fishermen and scientists are extremely concerned when billions of crabs have mysteriously disappeared from the Bering Sea near Alaska. The cause of this alarming phenomenon is not believed to be due to overfishing.
CNN reported that experts believe that the sudden warming of sea water has accelerated the crabs’ metabolism, causing them to starve to death. This sharp decline in crab numbers is seen as a sign of broader environmental changes taking place in the region. This change is highlighted in a study published on August 21, titled “Parts of the Bering Sea Are Actually Losing Their Arcticness.”
Research conducted by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has found that warming and ice melting in the southeastern Bering Sea—conditions commonly found in subarctic regions— The risk is now about 200 times higher than before humans started burning fossil fuels. warm the planet. Michael Litzow, lead author of the study and director of NOAA Fisheries’ Kodiak Laboratory in Alaska, emphasized how dramatically the Bering Sea ecosystem has changed compared to the past.
The disappearance of billions of crabs in Arctic waters is largely due to warmer ocean waters. Snow crabs, cold-water creatures that thrive in waters below 2 degrees Celsius, can survive in temperatures up to 12 degrees Celsius. However, marine heat waves in 2018 and 2019 caused out mass death. Warmer waters increased the crabs’ metabolic rate, but there wasn’t enough food to sustain them, leading to mass starvation and devastating Alaska’s fishing industry for years to come.
As recent studies show, snow crab has high commercial value, generating up to 227 million USD per year.
The decline in snow crab populations in Alaska signals broader ecological changes in the Arctic as oceans warm and sea ice disappears. Experts note that the waters around Alaska are becoming unsuitable for some marine species, including red king crabs and sea lions. The warmer Bering Sea is also welcoming new species, threatening established cold-water residents like snow crabs.
Normally, there is a temperature barrier in the ocean that prevents species like Pacific cod from reaching the cold habitat of snow crabs. But during the 2018-2019 heat wave, Pacific cod were able to migrate to these warmer waters, consuming some of the remaining snow crab population.
“We have observed changes in species distribution and mismatches between prey and predators, contributing to declines,” Robert Foy, director of the Alaska Fisheries Science Center, told CNN. some species, such as Pacific cod in the Gulf of Alaska.” Although Foy was not involved in the recent study, he notes that these important ecological changes present “new challenges and opportunities for fisheries science and management.” He added that fisheries managers are working to incorporate new technologies, such as drones and artificial intelligence, to “detect and respond more quickly to environmental changes and respond ecology”.
Scientists report that the Arctic is warming four times faster than the rest of the planet. Litzow describes the changes in the Bering Sea as a “harbinger” of what is to come.
“We all need to be aware of the impact of climate change,” he said. We are paying close attention to these changes because people’s livelihoods depend on them.”
