The Arctic's sea ice is shrinking by 12.2% every decade, and it's having a devastating effect on the wildlife that depend on it. Gray whales, which were once on the road to recovery after near extinction, are now facing an acute threat to their long-term survival. The whale's global population is in free-fall without any sign of recovery.
"It's hard to watch," Joshua Stewart, assistant professor in the Marine Mammal Institute at Oregon State University, told the Seattle Times.
What's happening?
Researchers at the Gray Whale Research in Mexico have been tracking gray whale breeding patterns since 2006 and are alarmed by the steep decline in calving rates. After feeding in the Arctic, gray whales migrate over 10,000 miles to breed in the lagoons of Baja California.
The most recent survey revealed a record-low number of calves and several malnourished adults. Melting sea ice has disrupted the whale's food web, resulting in critical nutritional deficiencies and causing mass die-offs among gray whales.
Gray whales feed from the ocean floor by swimming slowly on their sides while sucking up vast amounts of food and sediment and filtering it through baleen plates in their jaws, per NOAA. A gray whale will eat about 1.3 tons of food every day during feeding.
Consequently, they are vulnerable to disruptions in their food supply. Melting Arctic sea ice means less algae grows on the underside of the ice, which fertilizes the sea floor to support the fat-rich amphipods the whales depend on.
Why are gray whales important?
Like all great whales, gray whales play a crucial role in the ocean's ecosystem and the environment.
On average, a great whale captures about 33 tons of carbon that would otherwise reach the atmosphere. Their nutrient-rich waste sustains the ocean. Even in death, they continue to protect the planet by sinking to the ocean floor and providing sustenance to dozens of species.
What's being done about the gray whale population decline?
A commercial whaling ban helped the gray whale population recover to the extent that it was
delisted as an endangered species in 1994. That level of international cooperation will be necessary again to protect whales against the disruption to their food web. There's a lot that can be done at the individual level, too.
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