Huge numbers of fish species are predicted to leave the world's tropical oceans by 2050 as temperatures rise. Fish populations are also expected to move into warming Arctic and Antarctic waters as well.
The move will cause big issues for local populations who rely selling fish as food or attracting tourists to their waters in order to get by, according to a new study conducted by marine scientists from the University of British Columbia.
Findings were published in ICES Journal of Marine Science.
The marine biologists studied 802 species of tropical fish and researched how they reacted to warm water or change in water temperature. They based their results on the worst case scenario of global warming from Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
The estimate that fish would migrate in 21000 from their present habitats at a rate of 16 miles per decade if tropical waters get warmer by 3 degrees, according to the worst IPCC scenario.
In comparison, fish would migrate at a rate of 10 miles per decade if only 1 degree of water warming takes place, according to
"The tropics will be the overall losers," associate professor at the UBE Fisheries Centre, William Cheun said, according to the study. "This area has a high dependence on fish for food, diet, and nutrition. We'll see a loss of fish populations that are important to the fisheries and communities in these regions."
When the fish move to cooler waters, the researchers expect new opportunities to arise for fisheries, even though it would disrupt the species that live there now.
"As fish move to cooler waters, this generates new opportunities for fisheries in the Arctic," said Miranda Jones, another UBE researcher, according to the study. "On the other hand, it means it could disrupt the species that live there now and increase competition for resources."
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