00:00Over the last few years, there's been a mass die-off of snow crabs in the Bering Sea just
00:08off the coast of Alaska. Researchers estimate that between just 2018 and 2021, some 10 billion
00:14of the crabs have disappeared, meaning the species is in trouble. And now, according to a new report
00:20by researchers with the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Alaska Fisheries
00:25Science Center in Seattle, they might finally know why. Researchers found that in 2018, snow crab
00:30populations were reaching historic highs, leading to a $150 million crabbing industry in Alaska.
00:36However, after marine heatwaves hit their habitats, their numbers plummeted, killing billions of them,
00:41with the Alaskan crabbing industry only taking in $24 million in 2022. These heatwaves are becoming
00:48more common as our planet gets warmer, and it prevents typical sea ice formation. That ice
00:52has an annual melt cycle that sends frigid meltwater to the bottom of the sea, where the crabs call
00:57home. When the sea ice never formed during a marine warming period back in 2018, it couldn't
01:02eventually melt and create a cold summer habitat for the crabs, which the study has found increased
01:07the metabolisms of the previously mentioned record number of crabs, leading to too many snow crabs
01:12and too little food, ultimately resulting in a mass die-off.
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