Researchers have discovered major evidence for climate change in the increasingly acidic waters off the West Coast, where the shells of marine snails have been dissolving, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Part of the diet of pink salmon, mackerels and herrings, tiny pteropods grow to about one-eighth to half an inch in length and are now an important example of how ocean water can become corrosive due to increased levels of carbon dioxide.

The scientists' findings have been published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B.

"We did not expect to see pteropods being affected to this extent in our coastal region for several decades," said William Peterson, an oceanographer at NOAA's Northwest Fisheries Science Center and one of the paper's co-authors. "This study will help us as we compare these results with future observations to analyze how the chemical and physical processes of ocean acidification are affecting marine organisms."

The team has estimated that the percentage of pteropods in the area with dissolving shells has doubled since the pre-industrial era. That figure could be tripled by 2050, as the ocean acidity is expected to become 70 percent higher compared with its pre-industrial status.

"Our findings are the first evidence that a large fraction of the West Coast pteropod population is being affected by ocean acidification," said lead study author Nina Bednarsek of NOAA's Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory.

"Dissolving coastal pteropod shells point to the need to study how acidification may be affecting the larger marine ecosystem. These nearshore waters provide essential habitat to a great diversity of marine species, including many economically important fish that support coastal economies and provide us with food."

Researchers estimate that the ocean absorbs about a third of the carbon dioxide that is released into the atmosphere through human activity. The recent study shows that acidic waters move onto the continental shelf from depths of 400 to 600 feet during the upwelling season from April to September. 

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