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July 9, 2008 8:37:00 AM CDT

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Ocean Dead Zones Expanding

Posted May 2, 08 9:28 AM CDT in Science & Health    Editor's Choice

(Newser) – The inhospitable oxygen-starved layers of the oceans, once relegated to the deep sea, are now encroaching on coastlines, reports the Los Angeles Times. The dead zones, linked to global warming, have moved up into continental shelves, a study in Science says. They interfere with commercial fishing and entice predators that thrive in such conditions such as the jumbo squid.

"If you warm waters, they hold much less oxygen. That's the same as a bottle of soda water. If you open it warm, it'll fizz all over the place," explained one of the study's authors. When that warming water is the ocean, it can also create lighter upper layers that could interfere with global circulation, a potential doomsday scenario.

Source Los Angeles Times

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The increasingly inhospitable waters are driving fish away from commercial fisheries where dead zones are spreading off the coasts of California and Peru.   (Magnum Photos)
The oxygen-starved zones in the Pacific ocean, once confined to the deepest layers of water, are starting to spill over onto California's continental shelf.   (AP Photo/NASA)
The Humboldt squid, which can grow up to 7 feet long and weigh more than 110 pounds, is invading central California waters and preying on local anchovy, hake and other commercial fish.   (AP Photo/Ventura County Star, Dana Rene Bowler)
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climate change  • global warming  • ocean  • fishing  • oxygen  • ocean habitats


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