Another global warming tragedy
Warming causing gray whales to lose weight, say scientists
Quote:
Scientists on the US Pacific coast are increasingly observing emaciated gray whales in what they fear is a sign that global warming is wreaking havoc in the whales' Bering Sea summer feeding grounds.
The scientists fear that the same phenomenon is cutting back reproduction in the Pacific whale population to the point it could be facing a new crisis, after recovering in the mid-1990s and graduating from the endangered species list.
"The gray whales are migrating later, not going as far north, and are producing fewer calves," Steven Swartz, head researcher with the National Marine Fisheries Service told AFP.
Swartz, who with his team meticulously photograph and identify the migrating whales, estimates that at least ten percent of the population is seriously skinny.
"Instead of looking plump coming off the summer months, they have noticeable depressions behind the head, with scapulas visible through the skin, and concave sections above the tail," he added. "This is enough to cause alarm."
Swartz has studied the pacific whale population since 1977 and last saw a major whale die-off in 1999 when an El Nino warming cycle left traditional northern feeding grounds barren and claimed one third of the population.
I tried but could not find a photo of one of these skinny whales. But I have an idea, instead of a "fat tax" why not promote global warming as a way to combat obesity?
