Oysters are the figurehead of the Oceanic ecosystem, and in recent years they have been struggling to survive. Oyster numbers are dwindling due to a variety of causes, such as: climate change, ocean acidification, and over harvesting. New studies show that oysters are also harmed by atmospheric rivers that bring in large storms such as those that brought the large storms to California in early 2017. Scientists working at the San Francisco Bay China Camp found that oyster numbers drop significantly after a huge storm. The direct cause is still unknown but the most probable reason is that these large storms dumped huge amounts of freshwater into the Bay, which diluted the saltwater present. This dilution dropped salinity levels enough to kill off the oysters. This is important because it serves to remind us just how fragile our ecosystem is and how very small and temporary changes in the ecosystem can have huge impacts.
Source: https://www.sciencenews.org/article/oyster-deaths-linked-atmospheric-rivers?mode=topic&context=60
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