Study Says Climate Change Can Cause Decline in Fish Species

According to a study, the warming of the oceans due to climate change will lead to a fall in productive fish species in the future. The research found that as temperatures warm, predator-prey interactions will prevent species from keeping up with the conditions where they could thrive. 

Researchers have discovered that as the climate warms, large species and commercially important fisheries can not only leave their historical ranges but also become less abundant in new geographic ranges.

The study was focused on trophic interactions and other food web dynamics to determine how climate change affects species ranges. The researchers used sophisticated computer models to determine that predator-prey interactions can cause many species to shift their ranges more slowly than climate.

While these species projections provide insights into the composition of marine communities in a warming world, most of how interaction with food-web affects the pace of change, the researchers said.

By accounting for climate change, their model reveals dynamic trophic interactions hamper species’ ability to react quickly to warming temperatures. Researchers also found that larger-bodied predators stay longer than smaller prey in historic habitats, in part because of the arrival of new food sources to their pre-warming ranges.