Latest news with #MarineHeatwave
Yahoo
07-08-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Blue whales have gone silent. Why that has scientists worried about Earth's biggest animals ... and the ocean
Blue whales — the largest animals on Earth — aren't singing as much anymore, and that's got scientists concerned. A study published in PLOS analyzing six years' worth of acoustic data collected from the ocean's floor found that blue whale vocalizations have been decreasing as the animal's food sources have disappeared. The monitor — a hydrophone sitting on the sea floor off the coast of California — collected sounds from the various creatures in the ocean, including multiple whale species. By coincidence, the recordings began during a marine heatwave that is unprecedented in modern times. According to the study, the heatwave reduced the amount of krill available for blue whales to consume. As the krill disappeared, so too did the blue whale songs. Over the course of the acoustic collection, blue whale songs deceased by approximately 40 percent. 'When you really break it down, it's like trying to sing while you're starving,' John Ryan, a biological oceanographer at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute told National Geographic. 'They were spending all their time just trying to find food.' The marine heating event began in 2013, when a stubborn, dense pool of hot water — later dubbed "The Blob" — moved from the Bering Sea and the Gulf of Alaska down the eastern North American coast. In some places the ocean temperatures were more than 4.5 Fahrenheit above average due to the heating. The Blob grew and covered a 500 mile wide and 300 feet deep region in the Pacific Ocean. By 2016, it covered approximately 2,000 miles of the Pacific Ocean. The increase in temperature allowed for toxic algae blooms that killed off krill — tiny, shrimp like creatures — and other marine life. 'When we have these really hot years and marine heatwaves, it's more than just temperature,' Kelly Benoit-Bird, a Monterey Bay Aquarium marine biologist and co-author of the paper told National Geographic. 'The whole system changes, and we don't get the krill. So the animals that rely only on krill are kind of out of luck.' The blue whales were among those animals who were out of luck. They feed on densely packed krill — their huge mouths take in thousands of gallons of water at once, sucking in enormous numbers of the tiny creatures — but without krill present, they went hungry. Ryan said the whales have stopped singing because they're "spending all their energy searching" for food. "There's just not enough time left over—and that tells us those years are incredibly stressful," he said. Climate change, driven by the human burning of fossil fuels, will only make the situation worse, the researchers warn. The world's oceans already absorb more than 90 percent of the excess heat from climate change. 'There are whole ecosystem consequences of these marine heat waves,' continues Benoit-Bird. 'If they can't find food, and they can traverse the entire West Coast of North America, that is a really large-scale consequence.' Solve the daily Crossword
The Independent
06-08-2025
- Science
- The Independent
Blue whales have gone silent. Why that has scientists worried about Earth's biggest animals ... and the ocean
Blue whales — the largest animals on Earth — aren't singing as much anymore, and that's got scientists concerned. A study published in PLOS analyzing six years' worth of acoustic data collected from the ocean's floor found that blue whale vocalizations have been decreasing as the animal's food sources have disappeared. The monitor — a hydrophone sitting on the sea floor off the coast of California — collected sounds from the various creatures in the ocean, including multiple whale species. By coincidence, the recordings began during a marine heatwave that is unprecedented in modern times. According to the study, the heatwave reduced the amount of krill available for blue whales to consume. As the krill disappeared, so too did the blue whale songs. Over the course of the acoustic collection, blue whale songs deceased by approximately 40 percent. 'When you really break it down, it's like trying to sing while you're starving,' John Ryan, a biological oceanographer at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute told National Geographic. 'They were spending all their time just trying to find food.' The marine heating event began in 2013, when a stubborn, dense pool of hot water — later dubbed "The Blob" — moved from the Bering Sea and the Gulf of Alaska down the eastern North American coast. In some places the ocean temperatures were more than 4.5 Fahrenheit above average due to the heating. The Blob grew and covered a 500 mile wide and 300 feet deep region in the Pacific Ocean. By 2016, it covered approximately 2,000 miles of the Pacific Ocean. The increase in temperature allowed for toxic algae blooms that killed off krill — tiny, shrimp like creatures — and other marine life. 'When we have these really hot years and marine heatwaves, it's more than just temperature,' Kelly Benoit-Bird, a Monterey Bay Aquarium marine biologist and co-author of the paper told National Geographic. 'The whole system changes, and we don't get the krill. So the animals that rely only on krill are kind of out of luck.' The blue whales were among those animals who were out of luck. They feed on densely packed krill — their huge mouths take in thousands of gallons of water at once, sucking in enormous numbers of the tiny creatures — but without krill present, they went hungry. Ryan said the whales have stopped singing because they're "spending all their energy searching" for food. "There's just not enough time left over—and that tells us those years are incredibly stressful," he said. Climate change, driven by the human burning of fossil fuels, will only make the situation worse, the researchers warn. The world's oceans already absorb more than 90 percent of the excess heat from climate change. 'There are whole ecosystem consequences of these marine heat waves,' continues Benoit-Bird. 'If they can't find food, and they can traverse the entire West Coast of North America, that is a really large-scale consequence.'
Irish Times
04-06-2025
- Climate
- Irish Times
Ireland weather: May recorded as being much warmer, drier and brighter than normal
May proved to be much warmer, drier and brighter than normal with some weather stations recording their sunniest months since records began and average temperatures climbing significantly higher than historical norms, provisional figures from Met Éireann suggest. Temperatures across Ireland in May were the sixth highest on record with the average of 12.54 degrees exceeding the 20th century norm by almost two degrees. The data is in line with a trend of consistent May warming with the top seven highest average temperatures for the month having been recorded since 2008. Blocking high pressure, positioned mostly to the north of Ireland, dominated for the first three weeks with Atlantic low pressure breaking through in the final week. READ MORE The abundant sunshine and slack easterly airflow intensified the marine heatwave off the south and west coasts that had been building through April. May was 1.85 degrees above the 20th century average for the month and 1.21 degrees above the long-term average for the most recent climatological reference period of 1991-2020. Mean temperatures were as much as 14.2 degrees at Shannon Airport , Co Clare – its warmest May on record – while the month's highest temperature was reported at Newport, Co Mayo , on Tuesday, May 13th, which had a temperature of 24.8 degrees. Average rainfall was measured at 56mm, representing 70 per cent of the month's long-term average from 1991-2020. That ranks the month as the 23rd driest May since 1941 and the fourth consecutive year to have below the long-term average rainfall for the month. A total of 20 weather stations across the country recorded climatological dry spells – periods of 15 or more consecutive days with less than 1.0mm of rainfall – from the end of April into May. [ Q&A: What should we do about multiple climate risks threatening Ireland? Opens in new window ] Monthly rainfall values ranged from 31 per cent at Roches Point, Co Cork , to 104 per cent at Finner, Co Donegal . Total hours of sunshine from all available locations were above the long-term average for 1991-2020, with two stations recording their highest ever monthly sunshine totals, and a couple of others their highest totals for May. Record levels of sunshine were recorded at Shannon and Cork airports with Shannon basking in 288.9 hours of sun and Cork recording 290.4 hours. Johnstown Castle in Wexford had 298.8 hours of sun while Gurteen in Co Tipperary recorded 267.2 hours – their sunniest Mays on record. Elsewhere, Valentia Observatory in Co Kerry had its sunniest May since May 1961.
