Marine populations have fallen by half since 1970, says study

WWF and the Zoological Society London report, 16th September 2015: Marine species around the world, including populations of fish critical to human food security, are in potentially catastrophic decline according to new research.

WWF’s Living Blue Planet report, an updated study of marine mammals, birds, reptiles and fish, shows a decline of 49 per cent in the size of marine populations between 1970 and 2012. As well as being disastrous for ecosystems, these findings spell trouble for all nations, especially people in the developing world who depend heavily on the ocean’s resources.

Many species essential to commercial and subsistence fishing — and therefore global food supply — are significantly depleted due to over fishing.

Global population sizes of the Scombridae family of food fish that includes tunas, mackerels and bonitos have fallen by 74 per cent.

Declining stocks of bluefin and yellowfin are of particular concern.

Some species found in UK waters, including the vulnerable porbeagle shark and the critically endangered leatherback turtle, have also undergone precipitous declines.

While over-exploitation is identified as the major threat to ocean biodiversitybiodiversity Biological diversity in an environment as indicated by numbers of different species of plants and animals., the study finds that climate change is causing the ocean to change more rapidly than at any other point in millions of years.

Rising temperatures and increasing acidity levels caused by carbon dioxide are further weakening a system that is already severely degraded through overfishing, habitat degradation and pollution.

The analysis tracked 5,829 populations of 1,234 species, from sea birds to sharks to leatherback turtles, making the data sets almost twice as large as past studies.

The report also shows steep worldwide declines in the cover of coral reefs, mangroves and seagrasses that support fish species and provide valuable services to people.

It is very possible that we could lose coral reefs from most areas by 2050 as a result of climate change.

With over 25 per cent of all marine species living in coral reefs and about 850 million people directly benefiting from their economic, social and cultural services, the loss of these reefs would be catastrophic.

Marco Lambertini, Director General of WWF International said:
“In the space of a single generation, human activity has severely damaged the ocean by catching fish faster than they can reproduce while also destroying their nurseries.  Profound changes are needed to ensure abundant ocean life for future generations.”

“We are in a race to catch fish that could end with people starved of a vital food source and an essential economic engine.”

“Overfishing, destruction of marine habitats and climate change have dire consequences for the entire human population, with the poorest communities that rely on the sea getting hit fastest and hardest. The collapse of ocean ecosystems could trigger serious economic decline – and undermine our fight to eradicate poverty and malnutrition.”

Professor Ken Norris, Director of Science at ZSL said:
“The ocean works hard in the background to keep us alive, generating half of the world’s oxygen and absorbing almost a third of the carbon dioxide produced from burning fossil fuels. It also feeds billions of people around the globe, some of whom rely solely on the oceans to survive. These devastating figures reveal how quickly human beings are changing the wildlife in our oceans and are a stark warning of the problems we might face as a result.”

Source: WWF, 16th September 2015. For further details, see www.wwf.org.uk/about_wwf/press_centre/?unewsid=7673


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