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A marine heat wave has killed approximately half of Alaska’s common murre population, marking the largest recorded die-off of a single species in modern history, research has found.
The catastrophic loss points to broader changes in marine environments driven by warming ocean temperatures, which are rapidly and severely restructuring ecosystems and inhibiting the ability of such animals to thrive, according to a new study published in the journal Science.
The Northeast Pacific heat wave, known as “the Blob,” spanned the ocean ecosystem from California to the Gulf of Alaska in late 2014 to 2016. The event is considered the largest and longest known marine heat wave, with temperatures rising by 4.5 to 5.4 degrees Fahrenheit above normal levels, said Brie Drummond, coauthor of the study.
Common murres, or Uria aalge, are known for their distinctive black-and-white feathers, resembling the tuxedoed look of penguins. These predators play a critical role in regulating energy flow within the marine food web in the Northern Hemisphere.
By the end of the 2016 heat wave, Drummond and her team counted more than 62,000 common murre carcasses, which only accounted for a fraction of those lost since most dead seabirds never appear on land.
From there, biologists monitored the rate at which common murres were dying and reproducing and found no signs of the colonies returning to their previous size.
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