Decline in Marine Life
A new study reveals a shocking decline in marine biodiversity over the last couple decades. According to a report by the World Wildlife Fund, the ocean's wildlife population has been cut in half. Marine vertebrate populations have went down 49% between 1970 and 2012; Only 42 years, and the population has already been reduced to almost half of it's original size. Some fish species have also declined by an astonishing 75%.
In addition to the decrease in fish and marine animals, the report also reveals that there was a steep decline in coral reefs, mangroves, and sea-grasses. All of these support marine food webs and provide many valuable services to people. The loss of coral reefs would totally devastate the planet. With 25% of marine species living in coral reefs and about 850 million people depending on them for facilities/resources, we can not afford to lose them.
According to the study, the biggest contributors to this decline is mainly due to human activities, mainly over-fishing, habitat destruction, and climate change. We are the reason of this madness. We could prevent this if we stopped over-fishing, and cleaning up our beaches to decontaminate the ocean water. Because of the climate change, there is less oxygen in the water, which makes it harder for the fish and other marine animals to breathe, suffocating them to death. Climate change can be prevented if we stop polluting the air, which would lessen the amount of global warming. That would stop the temperature from rising, and therefore put a stop to the decline.
I chose this article because it was really interesting and I wasn't aware how serious the marine life has been affected by our actions.
Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/09/150917095044.htm
Article in source written on September 17, 2015
In addition to the decrease in fish and marine animals, the report also reveals that there was a steep decline in coral reefs, mangroves, and sea-grasses. All of these support marine food webs and provide many valuable services to people. The loss of coral reefs would totally devastate the planet. With 25% of marine species living in coral reefs and about 850 million people depending on them for facilities/resources, we can not afford to lose them.
According to the study, the biggest contributors to this decline is mainly due to human activities, mainly over-fishing, habitat destruction, and climate change. We are the reason of this madness. We could prevent this if we stopped over-fishing, and cleaning up our beaches to decontaminate the ocean water. Because of the climate change, there is less oxygen in the water, which makes it harder for the fish and other marine animals to breathe, suffocating them to death. Climate change can be prevented if we stop polluting the air, which would lessen the amount of global warming. That would stop the temperature from rising, and therefore put a stop to the decline.
I chose this article because it was really interesting and I wasn't aware how serious the marine life has been affected by our actions.
Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/09/150917095044.htm
Article in source written on September 17, 2015