NOAA scientists have released the first multispecies assessment of how vulnerable U.S. marine fish and invertebrate species are to the effects of climate change.
The study examined 82 species that occur off the Northeastern U.S., where ocean warming is occurring rapidly. Researchers found that most species evaluated will be affected, and that some are likely to be more resilient to changing ocean conditions than others.
Known as the Northeast Climate Vulnerability Assessment, the study is the first in a series of similar evaluations planned for fishery species in other U.S. regions.
The 82 Northeast species evaluated include all commercially managed marine fish and invertebrate species in the Northeast, a large number of recreational marine fish species, all marine fish species listed or under consideration for listing on the federal Endangered Species Act, and a range of ecologically important marine species.
Researchers from NOAA Fisheries and NOAA’s Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR)’s Earth System Research Laboratory, along with colleagues at the University of Colorado’s Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Science (CIRES), worked together on the project.
The study appears in PLOS ONE, an online scholarly science journal.
source: NOAA Fisheries