In News
- Huge blooms of phytoplankton — microscopic algae floating on the ocean’s surface — have become larger and more frequent along the world’s coastlines.
About
- Marine animals such as fish and whales eat phytoplankton.
- It can also prove toxic in large amounts, starving the ocean of oxygen and leading to “dead zones” that wreak chaos on the food chain and fisheries.
Reasons behind the boom
- Warmer sea surface temperatures.
- Changes in climate can also mess with ocean circulation, affecting mixing between ocean layers and how nutrients move around the ocean.
- Human development also plays a role. Fertilizer runoff from agriculture can spike nutrient loads in the ocean, leading to blooms.
Source: TH
