Between 2014 and 2016, one massive marine heat wavenicknamed “The Blob”, he devastated the northeastern Pacific Oceancausing the death of approximately 4 million seabirds. This event, considered the worst environmental disaster ever recorded for these species, highlighted the devastating impact of climate change on marine ecosystems.
The heat wave, which lasted about two years, saw ocean surface temperatures rise to 3 degrees Celsius above averagean extraordinary anomaly that has compromised the entire food chain. Seabirds, such as guillemots, suddenly found each other without enough foodleading to mass die-offs. Beaches from Alaska to California were covered in carcasses, a tangible sign of the scale of the catastrophe.
An analysis conducted by the University of Washington tracked the impact of this event on 13 seabird colonies between 2008 and 2022. The results are disconcerting: in the Gulf of Alaska, the bird population was reduced by halfwhile along the eastern Bering Sea the decline has reached 75%. This decline has been much more severe than initially estimated, with up to eight times higher mortality.
Seabird populations show no signs of recovery
Heather Renner, a wildlife biologist and co-author of the study, described these numbers as a real “punch in the stomach”. The effects of “The Blob” were not limited to heat stress on birdsbut they have radically altered food availability, leaving many species unable to survive.
Other marine species have also suffered: millions of snow crabs died of starvation in the Bering Sea, underlining how the heat wave has had repercussions on the entire food chain. Scientists warn that such events will become increasingly frequent as the oceans continue to warm, further threatening marine biodiversity.
Seven years after the event, seabird populations . Before the disaster, around 8 million guillemots were estimated to populate the region; Today, colonies are scarce and recovery seems unlikely. This situation highlights once again the urgency of tackling climate change to protect marine ecosystems and the species that depend on them.
