Seabirds are dying along California's coast because of a marine heat wave, with the devastation brought on by unusually warm waters that have persisted for months. In recent months, seabirds including the California brown pelican have starved to death, and the scenes of loss are on full display across the California coastline.
Wildlife observers are documenting the toll firsthand. On a walk on Rodeo Beach, surveyors counted seven cormorants, part of an effort to tally the birds and mammals that wash ashore. Their work is meant to capture the scale of the die-off as more dead animals turn up along the shore.
Experts trace the problem to the warming ocean itself. The warmer waters are making it difficult for seabirds to access the foods they usually eat, cutting them off from the reliable supply of prey that normally sustains them through the season along this stretch of coast.
The disruption reaches deep into the food chain. Fish such as krill, anchovies and sardines are ditching the warmer surface waters and going deeper, to where it is cooler. When seabirds hunt in their usual areas, the fish they depend on are simply no longer there, leaving the birds unable to feed.
Experts caution that it is not uncommon to see dead birds on the beach, and not all of the deaths are linked to the marine heat wave. Even so, it is the sheer number of seabird deaths they are now seeing that is getting their attention. As one put it, we should be concerned, because the environment is not the way it normally is.
The stakes go beyond the birds themselves. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, seabirds are a vital part of marine ecosystems and serve as indicators of ecosystem health, meaning their sudden decline is a warning sign about the broader state of the waters off California.