Climate change threatens penguins in Antarctica -- study
Published: Thursday, June 21, 2012
Global warming appears to be killing off at least one colony of chinstrap penguins in Antarctica, according to a recent study in the journal Polar Biology.
Over the last two decades, a population of chinstraps in the South Shetland Islands has declined by more than 35 percent, and researchers say melting sea ice is likely to blame.
The penguins eat shrimplike creatures called krill, which in turn eat algae that grows on the ice. So dwindling ice means less food for krill and ultimately less food for the penguins. Researchers say the Adélie penguin population in the region is also declining, likely for the same reason.
"This is an example of how the human activity far from the poles can affect the life at thousands of kilometers far from our homes," said researcher Andres Barbosa from the National Museum of Natural Sciences in Madrid (Jeanna Bryner, MSNBC, June 19). -- LJ
Reprinted from ClimateWire with permission from Environment & Energy Publishing, LLC. www.eenews.net. 202-628-6500
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