Diminishing sea ice threatens “circle of life”

In December the Alaskan federal government has proposed to list two seal species, which depend on sea ice, as threatened species due to dramatic melting of ice due to the increased temperature of global warming.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) seek to list ringed seals found in the Arctic Basin and the North Atlantic and two populations of bearded seals in the Pacific Ocean as threatened under the Endangered Species Act.

If the ringed seals become a lost species, experts are concerned for the 'circle of life' as they a main food source for polar bears, which are also a threatened species in Alaska.

The Center for Biological Diversity petitioned to list the seals in 2008 and later sued to force a decision on additional protections.

NOAA climate models were used to predict future diminishing sea ice conditions.

"We're pleased that NOAA is following the science and the law in recognising the reality of what global warming is doing to the Arctic and its species," said Brendan Cummings, an attorney for the Center for Biological Diversity.

Ringed seals can live in completely ice-covered waters, using strong claws to dig and maintain breathing holes. They excavate snow caves on sea ice to provide insulated shelters for themselves and their pups.

Ringed seals have a large population, Cummings said, but the entire population is dependent on sea ice, a habitat that is rapidly diminishing. An early breakup of sea ice threatens nests during critical rearing periods when pups are too young to survive in water. Warming can expose nests and make the young vulnerable to polar bears and arctic foxes.

"They're incredibly well-adapted to life in the Arctic, but what they're not adapted to is rain on snow and the lack of ice. This is an animal that essentially never comes to shore," Cummings said. "They evolved on the ice. Absent the ice, there's nowhere to go."

As the sea ice melts, it takes with it multiple key food sources and increases the temperature of the water, making the seals' habitant hostile and less familiar, according to the petition for listing.

As with polar bears, the state objects to listing species whose numbers have not been shown to be in decline. Ringed and bearded seals have "relatively high abundance levels," endangered species coordinator Doug Vincent-Lang said, and are not at risk of immediate extinction. They are more worried about the loss in habitat that in species, he continued.

Vincent-Lang said: "It's again this model of what could happen versus really using the ESA to protect species that are in some significant state of decline and are projected to continue to decline toward some risk of extinction within the next 20 to 30 years rather than 50 to 100 years into the future."

NOAA published its proposal for listing ringed and bearded seals in the Federal Register next despite the petition.

Author: Charity Knight | Climate Action

Image: Wikimedia | creativecommons