SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Are California's Starving Sea Lions Latest Victims of Climate Catastrophe?
Scientists in California say 'environment is changing too rapidly' for these marine mammals
Mar 13, 2015
Unusually warm waters off the California coast are causing the highest number of sea lion pup strandings over the past decade, scientists say, raising concerns about the long-term effects of climate change and rising ocean temperatures on the species' survival.
According to the New York Times, which reported on the sad phenomenon on Thursday:
Many of the pups are leaving the Channel Islands, an eight-island chain off the Southern California coast, in a desperate search for food. But they are too young to travel far, dive deep or truly hunt on their own, scientists said.
This year, animal rescuers are reporting five times more sea lion rescues than normal -- 1,100 last month alone. The pups are turning up under fishing piers and in backyards, along inlets and on rocky cliffs. One was found curled up in a flower pot.
"The environment is changing too rapidly," said Sharon Melin, a wildlife biologist with the National Marine Fisheries Service, who found that pups on the Channel Islands were 44 percent underweight.
A study published in October 2014 found that the ocean is getting warmer at a rate that far outpaces previous estimates.
And at the end of last year, Common Dreams reported on a similar event: a massive gathering of walruses--35,000 of them--crowded onto a small strip of shore in Alaska. Scientists attributed the swarm to global warming and declining sea ice.
"The walruses are telling us what the polar bears have told us and what many indigenous people have told us in the high Arctic, and that is that the Arctic environment is changing extremely rapidly and it is time for the rest of the world to take notice and also to take action to address the root causes of climate change," Margaret Williams, managing director of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Arctic program, said at the time.
FINAL DAY! This is urgent.
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission from the outset was simple. To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It’s never been this bad out there. And it’s never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed and doing some of its best and most important work, the threats we face are intensifying. Right now, with just hours left in our Spring Campaign, we're still falling short of our make-or-break goal. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Can you make a gift right now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? There is no backup plan or rainy day fund. There is only you. —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Deirdre Fulton
Deirdre Fulton is a former Common Dreams senior editor and staff writer. Previously she worked as an editor and writer for the Portland Phoenix and the Boston Phoenix, where she was honored by the New England Press Association and the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies. A Boston University graduate, Deirdre is a co-founder of the Maine-based Lorem Ipsum Theater Collective and the PortFringe theater festival. She writes young adult fiction in her spare time.
Unusually warm waters off the California coast are causing the highest number of sea lion pup strandings over the past decade, scientists say, raising concerns about the long-term effects of climate change and rising ocean temperatures on the species' survival.
According to the New York Times, which reported on the sad phenomenon on Thursday:
Many of the pups are leaving the Channel Islands, an eight-island chain off the Southern California coast, in a desperate search for food. But they are too young to travel far, dive deep or truly hunt on their own, scientists said.
This year, animal rescuers are reporting five times more sea lion rescues than normal -- 1,100 last month alone. The pups are turning up under fishing piers and in backyards, along inlets and on rocky cliffs. One was found curled up in a flower pot.
"The environment is changing too rapidly," said Sharon Melin, a wildlife biologist with the National Marine Fisheries Service, who found that pups on the Channel Islands were 44 percent underweight.
A study published in October 2014 found that the ocean is getting warmer at a rate that far outpaces previous estimates.
And at the end of last year, Common Dreams reported on a similar event: a massive gathering of walruses--35,000 of them--crowded onto a small strip of shore in Alaska. Scientists attributed the swarm to global warming and declining sea ice.
"The walruses are telling us what the polar bears have told us and what many indigenous people have told us in the high Arctic, and that is that the Arctic environment is changing extremely rapidly and it is time for the rest of the world to take notice and also to take action to address the root causes of climate change," Margaret Williams, managing director of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Arctic program, said at the time.
Deirdre Fulton
Deirdre Fulton is a former Common Dreams senior editor and staff writer. Previously she worked as an editor and writer for the Portland Phoenix and the Boston Phoenix, where she was honored by the New England Press Association and the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies. A Boston University graduate, Deirdre is a co-founder of the Maine-based Lorem Ipsum Theater Collective and the PortFringe theater festival. She writes young adult fiction in her spare time.
Unusually warm waters off the California coast are causing the highest number of sea lion pup strandings over the past decade, scientists say, raising concerns about the long-term effects of climate change and rising ocean temperatures on the species' survival.
According to the New York Times, which reported on the sad phenomenon on Thursday:
Many of the pups are leaving the Channel Islands, an eight-island chain off the Southern California coast, in a desperate search for food. But they are too young to travel far, dive deep or truly hunt on their own, scientists said.
This year, animal rescuers are reporting five times more sea lion rescues than normal -- 1,100 last month alone. The pups are turning up under fishing piers and in backyards, along inlets and on rocky cliffs. One was found curled up in a flower pot.
"The environment is changing too rapidly," said Sharon Melin, a wildlife biologist with the National Marine Fisheries Service, who found that pups on the Channel Islands were 44 percent underweight.
A study published in October 2014 found that the ocean is getting warmer at a rate that far outpaces previous estimates.
And at the end of last year, Common Dreams reported on a similar event: a massive gathering of walruses--35,000 of them--crowded onto a small strip of shore in Alaska. Scientists attributed the swarm to global warming and declining sea ice.
"The walruses are telling us what the polar bears have told us and what many indigenous people have told us in the high Arctic, and that is that the Arctic environment is changing extremely rapidly and it is time for the rest of the world to take notice and also to take action to address the root causes of climate change," Margaret Williams, managing director of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Arctic program, said at the time.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.