El Niño Effect on Plankton Could Hurt Food Supply for Fish, and Ultimately Humans

This year’s El Niño, projected to be a strong one, may leave a lot of fish and seafood lovers hungry. 

Two new images from October 2014 and 2015  from NASA's Earth Observatory show chlorophyll levels in the Pacific Ocean. The shades of green indicate more chlorophyll, which means there is blooming phytoplankton – a major source of food for fish –  and shades of blue indicate less chlorophyll and less phytoplankton.

The decrease in phytoplankton between the two years is plain to see, and a cause for concern in terms of marine life. Less plankton means a significant reduction in food supply for small fish, which causes a lack of food for the bigger fish that feed on them.  Humans could ultimately feel the effects through a seafood shortage.

Many marine animals undergo famine and dramatic population drops during and after an El Niño.

“Already some of the stocks that have been coming back are showing big declines,” said Laurie Weitkamp, fisheries researcher at NOAA’s Northwest Fisheries Research Center.

“We won’t know the full impact on salmon or crab for a few years. But I think they are going to do terribly,” said copepod expert Bill Peterson, who is also based at NOAA’s Northwest Fisheries Research Center.

http://www.weather.com/news/news/el-nino-marine-life-food-supply-disrupted-plankton