The effects of climate change are wide ranging and varied, and many of the long-lasting impacts are still unknown. When it comes to oceans, they are extremely important to mitigating climate change and serve as a large heat and carbon sinks. However, the ocean is also extremely vulnerable to unsustainable human practices such as overfishing and excessive greenhouse gas emissions. Some of the most notable effects on the oceans are changing ocean water temperatures, habitat loss, fluctuating weather patterns, and species endangerment. For the final research project, our group studied the effect of human caused threats on the Atlantic striped bass located in the Chesapeake Bay. We also looked at policy that could potentially be implemented to mitigate the effects on the species and ecosystems as a whole. The management and sustainability of striped bass has been a hot topic in recent years with fluctuations in the population of the species especially in the Chesapeake Bay area. For our group final project, we explored the sustainability and migration patterns of the striped bass (Morone saxatilis). Specifically, we looked at the potential impacts of overfishing and climate change on population abundance and patterns of the fish species in the Chesapeake Bay area. Our final paper was split into sections discussing the taxonomy and history of the striped, managements and threats to population, research done by Dr. Wilson Laney, an adjunct assistant professor at North Carolina State University, predator-prey dynamics in the striped bass ecosystem, fisheries management, and sustainability and policy regarding striped bass in the Chesapeake Bay area. The striped bass species has sat on the cusp of extinction in the past, and overfishing as well as impacts of climate change have once again caused the species to be in a critical position. As a result, several policies, such as a size requirement on catching and keeping a striped bass, have been enforced on fisheries and anglers to ensure that the population does not deplete to levels below the threshold. Climate change could potentially further strains management and success of the fish because migration patterns are affected by changing weather patterns and potentially warming ocean temperatures. It is easy to lose meaning in buzzwords and scientific jargon, but we must keep in mind the real-world urgency and importance of mitigating climate change and unsustainable human practices like overfishing. At the end of the day, we as humans exist as one species among millions, and we must recognize that our convenience is not worth the steady destruction of nature. Striped bass are not just filets and packaged goods waiting to be trawled; they’re a crucial part of the Atlantic Ocean food web. The hubris to continue these unsustainable practices driving climate change will consume nature and natural processes until there is nothing left to consume. "Entire ecosystems are collapsing. We are in the beginning of a mass extinction. And all you can talk about is money and fairytales of eternal economic growth.” Thunberg’s infamous “we will not forgive you” may sound strange at a cursory listen, but it rings true; Mother Nature can only forgive human transgressions so many times before the damage is irreparable.
1 Comment
11/17/2022 07:48:14 am
They participant set writer white me expect rather. Several who set risk result fill west billion. Listen increase performance cover especially baby.
Reply
Leave a Reply. |