The Conservation Council of New Brunswick’s Fundy Baykeeper Matt Abbott says climate change is affecting the Bay of Fundy and the Gulf of Maine — especially when it comes to delicate marine life systems and water temperature.
“We are in a real state of flux,” says Abbott. “We have seen significant changes over the past few years. The Gulf of Maine – of which the Bay of Fundy is part – is one of the fastest warming bodies of water in the world, associated with climate change.”
Abbott says the current state of marine life is a reflection of the changes in the water’s acidity and temperature – all affected by climate change. Experts have noted several dramatic changes with certain bay inhabitants – namely, puffins living on Machias Seal Island off N.B.’s Grand Manan Island.
University of New Brunswick marine bird ecologist Tony Diamond reported that “only 12 per cent of the chicks from roughly 5,500 breeding pairs of puffins made their way from nesting burrows to the sea.”
Diamond says the birds are in poor condition. This affects their return to the island when the time comes for nesting again. The birds’ main staple food – herring – is and has been declining over the past decade. Diamond also notes that alternative food sources – fatty, juvenile fish like sand eels and hake – are also in short supply this year.
Concerns over the North Atlantic right whale populations are mounting as climate change manifests in more serious ways. With food concentrations diminishing in the Bay of Fundy, so too are whale numbers. Read CCNB’s article on current right whale populations and what’s being done to help here.
“Scientists are looking at changes in food supply for a variety of species and that is likely part of the story around puffins and part of the story around right whales,” says Abbott. “We know that the Bay of Fundy has been changing.”
- For more information on the effects of climate change on the Bay of Fundy, read the National Resource Defense Council’s report on tanker traffic and potential issues affecting the Bay here: Sensitive Marine Ecosystems Threatened by Energy East’s ‘Aquatic Pipeline’
- Watch a magnificent Humpback whale breaching in the Bay of Fundy here: Humpback Fundy.
- Read CCNB’s bold, made-in-New Brunswick plan to address climate change here: Climate Action Plan.
- Read the full story here (paywall): Scientists say Bay of Fundy changing, affecting marine life.