The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) announced an Unusual Mortality Event (UME) after a mass die-off of whales occured. This prompts greater scrunity and use of resources to investigate the cause.
This event was triggered after 70 grey whales were found stranded along the U.S Western Pacific Coast, between California and Alaska. The death toll is only a fraction of the stark reality as most whales sink when they die. The majority of the whales were found emaciated with low body fat suggesting a decline in food resources for their migration north. This annual migration occurs between their calving grounds in Mexico and their feeding grounds in the Arctic seas. "There are major shifts in the Arctic ecosystem right now with the increased temperatures and faster than expected ice melting that could definitely impact the food base for grey whales" reported Dawn Goley, professor of zoology at Humboldt State. Read more at: https://lostcoastoutpost.com/2019/jun/20/whale-strandings/ https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/noaa-investigating-dozens-gray-whale-deaths-along-west-coast-180972333/
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