09/16/2019
Marine biologists fear return of a killer ‘Blob'
Waters are warming in the Pacific Ocean again, threatening the food chain critical for marine life such as seals and birds and sounding the alarm for marine biologists. A marine heatwave called the “Blob” hit the same patch of ocean off the western coast of North America in 2014-2016, creating toxic algae blooms, killing sea lions and endangering whales by forcing them to forage closer to shore. Scientists are not sure the heatwaves are tied to global warming, but the oceans have absorbed about 90% of excess heat linked to the climate crisis.
■Class discussion: Do you think a warming climate could threaten human beings like the marine life killed by the “Blob”? How does the food chain work? What could disrupt the food chain that feeds us? Could a warmer climate trigger droughts, flooding, disease or species extinctions that break the food chain? How could starvation caused by climate change in other parts of the world threaten people in the United States? If you were starving, would you try survive by migrating or going to war?