Tens of thousands of deaths due to drought

Tens of thousands of salmon have died in Canada, largely because the drought has dried up the streams they swim in. Let’s find out how this very dangerous situation from an environmental point of view came about.

more than 65,000 wild salmon The Pacific, on the western side of Canada, lay in a completely dry stream bed: these were only the first effects of the rare recent rains. Many of them failed to reproduce.

Salmon die-off warning: Caused by drought

In Canada, the Drought Caused a fatality of salmon of vast proportions. Images of the disaster circulating online show thousands of corpses piled up where a stream used to run, now completely dry. But the situation is similar in other bodies of water. In the past, it rained in the west British Columbiawas very rare, and Salmon’s death This is only the first of the consequences Drought and irregular warming in local ecosystems.

As predicted they will be over 65,000 wild Pacific salmon, Pink salmon and chum salmon, in particular, died due to the lack of rain affecting the entire Canadian west coast; At least 70% of them are unable to lay eggs.

William HoustyThe Heildchuk Nation’s conservation manager told The Guardian that wild salmon usually wait for rain in streams and rivers, as that is a signal that water levels will rise and make their journey easier. According to Housty, a brief afternoon shower a few days ago, combined with a high tide, tricked the salmon into thinking it was time to start the rise.

Housty continues:

“We have had only one rainy afternoon in over a month. Without the rain and tide, I doubt many of these salmon would have stood still [nell’oceano] to wait They haven’t had enough time to adjust to the reality of this drought.

Effects of climate change on species conservation

Overfishing rivers and streams, it is natural for salmon to lose their lives. Lays eggs In high water, in order to allow Reproduction of species. On the other hand, this death risks compromising the conservation status of salmon. British Columbia Chum salmon stocks have been declining in recent years, particularly in the Bella Bella area.

there Drought has reached record levels this year In many parts of the world, the health of ecosystems is threatened, and the situation is not improving: according to a recent study, published by the Global Weather Attribute in our hemisphere, the Northern Hemisphere. climate changes, Severe droughts are 20 times more severe than in the past.