Climate Change Threatens Penguins

New York Times:

P. Dee Boersma, a biologist at the University of Washington, has been watching the Magellanic penguins of Punta Tombo, in Argentina, for almost 30 years. For most of that time, their numbers have been declining: breeding pairs are down 22 percent there since 1987, she writes in Tuesday's issue of BioScience.

But the dwindling numbers do not just mean the birds are suffering, Dr. Boersma writes. Because penguins are "marine sentinels," their decline is a blunt message that their marine environment is in trouble, chiefly from overfishing and pollution from offshore oil operations and shipping.

Read the whole story: New York Times

Comments

[kingcityguru]

11:09 AM on 07/01/2008

Why are there more polar bears alive now than 20 years ago despite these alledged temperature increases. Anyone see "march of the penguins" -- I bet they like it better when it is warmer than when they are freezing at 35 below.

[blueshield]

01:52 PM on 07/01/2008

It's clear, most penguins have migrated to Florida, which explains the decline.

[TimmySlagle]

10:31 AM on 07/01/2008

"The Punta Tombo colony, where Dr. Boersma has worked for almost 30 years, is the largest, with perhaps 200,000 breeding pairs. She said she and her graduate students and volunteer assistants had banded more than 50,000 birds in the colony."

That's one in eight that are now "banded."

Hey, do you think the decline in population might have something to do, with the Doctor and a bunch of kids rounding up the birds and clamping metal shackles around their legs?