News Release

Marine heatwave linked to seabird die-off

An emaciated Common Murre carcass on the beach.

News Release Date: July 22, 2020

Contact: Heather Coletti

Ocean ecosystems are changing, driven largely by ocean heatwaves and, specifically, the massive heatwave of 2014-2016 known as The Blob. This paper focuses on the Common Murre die-off in 2016-2016 and discusses the many related ecosystem components also impacted.

In the winter of 2015-2016, researchers and volunteers counted 62,000 bird carcasses washed up on beaches from California to Alaska. Because not all dead birds wash up on the shore, we estimate the total to be as many as a million dead birds. They all starved; no evidence of other causes of mortality was found.

Other ecosystem changes were found in conjunction with the marine heatwave that made sense in connection to the murre starvation. The base of the food chain, plankton, were impacted and had an impact on many other marine species. These changes, while especially pronounced in 2014-2016, continue with warming ocean waters today.

For more information, see:

• How Marine Heatwaves are Changing Ocean Ecosystems (story map)
• Web article
• Extreme mortality and reproductive failure of common murres resulting from the northeast Pacific marine heatwave of 2014-2016, PLoS ONE (2020)