Climate change shrinks marine life richness near equator: study

GS PAPER III: Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment.

Context: Research published finds that the total number of open-water species declined by about half in the 40 years up to 2010 in tropical marine zones worldwide.

• During that time, sea surface temperatures in the tropics rose nearly 0.2℃.
• There is mounting evidence that the warming of waters due to climate change may be taking a large toll as well — both off the island’s coast and globally.
• Climate change is already impacting marine species diversity distribution,” with changes being more dramatic in the Northern Hemisphere where waters have warmed faster.
• While numerous factors like overfishing have impacted tropical species, there is a strong correlation between species decline and rising temperature.
• Fish species diversity tended to either plateau or decline at or above 20℃.

‘Blink of an eye’

• Ocean warming is driving some species to migrate to cooler waters.
• The number of species attached to the seafloor remained somewhat stable in the tropics between the 1970s and 2010.

https://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/energy-and-environment/climate-change-shrinks-marine-life-richness-near-equator-study/article34250664.ece?homepage=true