![]() In spring, most of the population, including almost all of the females and young, follow the retreating sea ice into the Chukchi Sea where they remain until they return to the Bering Sea as ice reforms in autumn.” The authors noted: “Virtually the entire Pacific walrus population winters in the ice pack of the Bering Sea, where they breed. ![]() A new paper by a group of researchers at the United States Geological Survey, the Fish and Wildlife Service and the University of California concluded: “Declining extent of summer sea ice in the Chukchi Sea has caused Pacific walruses to increase use of coastal haulouts and decrease use of more productive offshore feeding areas”. The most recent analysis by the United States National Snow and Ice Data Center shows that the sea ice extent in September has been dropping by 13.2 per cent per decade since satellite measurements began in 1979.Īnd that reduction is having real consequences for Pacific walruses. Viscount Ridley’s column notably did not even acknowledge the fall in Arctic sea ice that has been occurring. Scientists have been pointing out for many years that Pacific walruses, in particular, have been affected by a reduction in sea ice during the late summer and autumn, when Arctic sea ice reaches its minimum level. In writing this, Viscount Ridley was ignoring the documented scientific evidence that was the basis for the programme’s claim. The main thing that has changed is that there are now more walruses, and more polar bears feasting on them, throughout the Arctic”. But Viscount Ridley wrote: “Walruses have hauled out on shore, or on what’s left of the ice at that season, forever. ![]() The programme pointed out that this was linked to the effects of global warming on the Arctic. So he took exception to a sequence in the first episode of Blue Planet II, broadcast on BBC 1 on 29 October and available to view on BBC iPlayer, which showed a female walrus and her calf struggling to find a patch of sea ice on which to ‘haul out’. This positive spin about the environment, playing down the evidence of problems, is a key feature of Viscount Ridley’s writing, and is embodied by his book ‘The Rational Optimist’ and his blog of the same name. His column talked up the recent successes in parts of the world of halting the decline in some species that are suffering from human activities, such as overfishing. He used his regular column in ‘The Times’ to attack David Attenborough the BBC’s wonderful ‘Blue Planet II’ for daring to highlight the scientific evidence that climate change is having a detrimental impact on the world’s oceans.Īlthough Viscount Ridley, who describes himself as a “lukewarmer”, praised the programme for drawing attention to the dangers of plastic for marine wildlife, he criticised its coverage of ocean acidification and declining polar sea ice. Earlier this week, Viscount Ridley demonstrated yet again why he and other so-called “lukewarmers” cannot be trusted by the public on climate change.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |