Hope for the Sea Around Us

Anchovies at Bolinas Lagoon (SFGate)

Global warming Climate change is supposed to poison the oceans, but so far that 2003 model prediction hasn't conformed to reality. In fact, the opposite may be happening.

Sea life is thriving off the coast of Northern California.

According to [Fishing Association President Larry] Collins, the water this year is the coldest local fishermen have seen in a long time, and the anchovies are a testament to that.

“It's just totally healthy ocean out there right now. I heard guys telling me about pelicans that, instead of diving to fill their mouths up, they’re just skimming the water and getting full mouths of anchovies,” Collins said.

Helicopter photo of Antarctic fin whales (YouTube)

Fin whales (only blue whales are larger) are returning to the coast of Antarctica.

Large numbers of fin whales have returned to their ancestral feeding areas near Antarctica for the first time since hunting of the animals was banned almost half a century ago, scientists said in a paper published Thursday in the journal Scientific Reports.

The unexpected finding offers a hopeful sign not only for efforts to conserve the giant animals, according to the researchers, but also for the health of the ocean ecosystems in which they live. Whale feces fertilize microscopic plants known as phytoplankton. Those are eaten by tiny, shrimplike animals known as krill, which in turn sustain dolphins, seals, penguins and other marine species...

The population of fin whales in the Southern Hemisphere has reached nearly 8,000, the study showed. That is up from about 3,000 when the International Whaling Commission issued a moratorium on hunting of the whales in the Southern Hemisphere in 1976. Whaling before that time killed an estimated 700,000 fin whales.

There be dolphins here (WSJ photo)

Dolphins are coming back to the East River:

Partly because New York City waters aren’t as foul as they once were, dolphins have been visiting in greater numbers of late...

Scientists believe the marine mammals may be arriving in warmer months in pursuit of one of their favorite foods, the Atlantic menhaden, which are congregating in the area thanks to robust conservation efforts. The waters surrounding the city are cleaner now than at any time since the Civil War, said Ted Timbers, a spokesman for the NYC Department of Environmental Protection.

"...since the Civil War"--the baby boomers' yearning for Walden (1854) may not be a pipe dream after all.

Unlike some climate-change alarmists, your humble blogger won't be so bold as to claim that three data points prove a hypothesis. However, they are an indication that the situation isn't as dire as the alarmists claim, and that there's hope that some of the damage is reversible.