But wait, there's more. Ocean warming and ocean acidification are not the only events that are affecting krill. There is also an increase in fishing, and predators which has a detrimental effect as well.
Fishing
Krill fishing has increased over the past few years due to one true reason: omega-3 fatty acids. Krill fishing has always occurred for these creatures are used in fish food and fertilizer in Scandinavian countries. But once an undergraduate in 1990s discovered krill had omega-3 fatty acid, a type of fat that works as an all natural anti-inflammatory agent that reduces swelling in the body. Health nuts swear by this stuff. The initial discovery wasn't all that concerning in the beginning because it was so hard to even catch and process krill. They are so delicate that when you bring them up in nets, the krill at the bottom are crushed from the weight pressing down on them, and krill also could not survive the trip back to land for processing. However, now countries are launching "factory ships." (Schiermeir, 2010, Ecologist fear Antarctic crisis) These ships collect the krill and process them all on board, increasing the amount of krill taken per year. Now krill oil is in wider production and is increasing in popularity for the simple reason the customer gets the same result, but no fishy after taste. More and more countries are beginning to deploy these factory ships, but for now, they are staying within the fishing guidelines that were established just in case this situation arose, but krill already feed a wide range of predators, can it really handle being targeted by another that doesn't know when to stop (Moran, 2012, Team tracks food supply)?
Predation Increase
I know this next one will sound a little strange, but the context is the major consideration here. Whale populations over 100 years ago were utterly destroyed due to commercial whaling. Now some whales, such as the Humpback whale, are approaching their pre-whaling numbers again, but krill are not. As has been stated previously, Antarctic krill population is believed to have decreased by 80% over the last 30 years and the population in the ocean today is nowhere near the numbers that existed back in pre-whaling times. The krill population now cannot support a growing whale population along with all the penguins and seals that feed upon them as well. Soon, predators will begin to starve because krill numbers will be so few. Scientists have already noticed the pattern in Gentoo and Adelie penguins.
Economic Impact
As the Antarctic krill continue to feed humans and marine animals alike, they will be strectched too thin. As krill numbers continue to decrease, their resilience will decrease because animals and humans alike cannot be picky like they once were. We may reach a point where krill no matter what development stage they are in become a valuable commodity and if krill cannot comfortably feed animals and humans alike, profits will take a hit. Places that may have been popular whale watching spots due to the krill present will no longer draw whales as they swim to other places in search of food, possibly hurting local economies that used to be able to rely on whale watching as a source of revenue. Also, as krill decreases, krill oil will become a luxury item and the price will increase as less and less is produced due to restrictions. This will also have a negative effect on fish markets because whatever fish feed upon krill, their numbers will decrease affecting those markets. Antarctic krill have a powerful hold upon the livelihoods of many businesses and their disappearacne would neagatively affect many pocketbooks (Antarctic Treaty Meeting of Experts, 2010).
Fishing
Krill fishing has increased over the past few years due to one true reason: omega-3 fatty acids. Krill fishing has always occurred for these creatures are used in fish food and fertilizer in Scandinavian countries. But once an undergraduate in 1990s discovered krill had omega-3 fatty acid, a type of fat that works as an all natural anti-inflammatory agent that reduces swelling in the body. Health nuts swear by this stuff. The initial discovery wasn't all that concerning in the beginning because it was so hard to even catch and process krill. They are so delicate that when you bring them up in nets, the krill at the bottom are crushed from the weight pressing down on them, and krill also could not survive the trip back to land for processing. However, now countries are launching "factory ships." (Schiermeir, 2010, Ecologist fear Antarctic crisis) These ships collect the krill and process them all on board, increasing the amount of krill taken per year. Now krill oil is in wider production and is increasing in popularity for the simple reason the customer gets the same result, but no fishy after taste. More and more countries are beginning to deploy these factory ships, but for now, they are staying within the fishing guidelines that were established just in case this situation arose, but krill already feed a wide range of predators, can it really handle being targeted by another that doesn't know when to stop (Moran, 2012, Team tracks food supply)?
Predation Increase
I know this next one will sound a little strange, but the context is the major consideration here. Whale populations over 100 years ago were utterly destroyed due to commercial whaling. Now some whales, such as the Humpback whale, are approaching their pre-whaling numbers again, but krill are not. As has been stated previously, Antarctic krill population is believed to have decreased by 80% over the last 30 years and the population in the ocean today is nowhere near the numbers that existed back in pre-whaling times. The krill population now cannot support a growing whale population along with all the penguins and seals that feed upon them as well. Soon, predators will begin to starve because krill numbers will be so few. Scientists have already noticed the pattern in Gentoo and Adelie penguins.
Economic Impact
 |
| http://icestories.exploratorium.edu/dispatches/wp-content/uploads/2008/05/wildlife_krill3.jpg |
You might want to explain the figure so that the reader knows what it's talking about.
ReplyDelete