Killer Whales and Global Warming
Killer Whales and Global Warming
Killer Whales are drastically affected by climate change. It certainly changes their natural habitat for those
that live in the colder areas around the Antarctic region. One of the main concerns is that they won’t migrate like
before. In the past they did so because they couldn’t effectively move along the ice packs. As more of that ice
melts though they may not have a need to.
Why is that a concern? It is often during the migration process that these pods find other pods that the males and
females mate with. They never mate within their own pod so they need to move in order for the reproduction process
to take place. Killer Whales don’t do well under stress either. As their natural environment is changing around
them they may not eat well. Many of them won’t engage in reproduction processes either which jeopardizes the
chances of the population increasing.
The amount of food that is readily available for them can also be affected by climate change. They will find it
harder to get their supply at times, and then they are going to have to leave their natural habitat. While they can
be adaptive it can be harsh on them and other Killer Whales in the area. The entire balance of things in the oceans
can be difficult. We don’t know where Killer Whales spend their winter months, and that location can be changed too
if the warmer temperatures continue due to global warming.
The other food sources out there will also be affected. For example there are reports of Killer Whales now
consuming sea otters. This wasn’t a source of food for them in the past. As a result other predators that normally
consume them have found it harder to get enough. The number of sea otters also continues to drop because Killer
Whales consume so much food on a daily basis.
Killer Whales already have a bad reputation, and as their natural environment is changing so are their behaviors.
Many of them are believed to be more aggressive than just a decade ago. This is blamed on stress that results from
many factors including climate change. Since the Killer Whales will be in areas that they normally aren’t, they are
more of a risk in areas where boats and people normally are.
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Emperor Penguins. Image courtesy of
NOAA.
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If the predictions of experts are right, the negative aspects of climate change on Killer Whales isn’t
going to do well for their numbers. It can be one of the primary triggers for them to steadily lose numbers. The
temperatures have rapidly increased over the past 20 years. It is estimated that by 2100 they will increase about
18 degrees Fahrenheit in the Antarctic regions.
The reduction of icebergs and other formations out there will alter the temperatures of the water as well as how
storms affect it. Right now these items offer plenty of breakage so storms aren’t as powerful as they would
otherwise be. The future risk of severe natural disasters involving violent weather are a huge possibility. Chances
are a large number of the Killer Whales that live in the Antarctic region would be killed because of it.
This is why many of the conservation efforts out there regarding the Killer Whales are focused on environmental
factors. With adequate changes we can see some reversal of global warming. At the very least we can prevent it from
continuing. Improving the environment and stopping such climate change problems for Killer Whales is the
responsibility of all of us. Humans as well as all of the other animals around can benefit from such efforts as
well.
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