Snow crab is one of many marine food species that is not going to make the long haul
Rapid decline of Bering sea ice has unexpected long term consequences for crab fisheries
Add Alaskan snowcrab to the growing list of marine animals threatened by rapidly changing conditions on the ground, or, in this case, in the Bering Sea. Extreme ocean warming in the area around the Pribilof Islands (between Siberia and Alaska) has crashed the population, causing Alaska state biologists to slash this year’s harvest of snow crab to just 5.6 million pounds — down nearly 90% from 2021 levels.
The problem with snowcrab is a precipitous decline of sea ice in the Bering Sea, a situation that has been going downhill for a decade. Snow crab rely on the ice to protect them from predators as they grow.
Other threatened marine food is shellfish (clams, oysters, mussels and calamari (the squid are heading north).
2022 Climate Shocks
- Another year of critical water shortages in Idaho
- Sydney Harbor smashed by sea-level driven tides.
- Afghanistan historic drought
- Antarctic ice shelf breaks away
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Climate Feedback Cycles….
- Sea ice melt (albedo)
- Wildfires (Rainforest / Siberia)
- Methane & Permafrost collapse
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