Wednesday, July 13, 2005 Really BAD Sign: Plankton Missing in Ocean Oceanic plankton have largely disappeared from the waters off of CA, OR & WA. The plankton disappearance is caused by a lack of the seasonal movement of cold, nutrient-rich offshore water (called upwelling) into areas near shore. This cold water sustains vast quantities of plankton, which are the basis of the entire marine food web. During periods of vigorous upwelling, the plankton "blooms" & everything from salmon to blue whales fattens and thrives off of the W. Coast. Now that plankton are largely absent, fisheries and wildlife are feeling the effects by witnessing widespread seabird mortality, far fewer fish and marine mammals, & a general decline in near-shore oceanic life, but hey, according to Fox News' Brian Kilmeade, it was ridiculous for our world leaders at the G8 Summit to even care about global warming. Yeah, the impending collapse of the entire ocean ecosystem is so unworthy of our thoughts & it's so pro-life to destroy our planet, huh? |