Record warmth in Arctic threatens walruses, forces fish northward: report

WASHINGTON - Record high air temperatures over land areas and decreasing sea ice extent and Greenland ice sheet mass are threatening survival of walruses and forcing a northward movement of some fish species in the Arctic zone, a new US government-sponsored report said Tuesday.

An estimated 35,000 walruses are pictured are pictured hauled out on a beach near the village of Point Lay, Alaska, 700 miles northwest of Anchorage, in this September 2014 handout photo.  [Photo/Agencies]

The average Arctic land surface air temperature for the past year, between October 2014 and September 2015, was 2.3 degrees Fahrenheit (1.3 degrees Celsius) above average, the warmest in the observational record which began in 1900, according to the Arctic Report Card 2015, an annual peer-reviewed report released by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

"The Arctic is warming twice as fast as other parts of the planet, which has ramifications for global security, climate, commerce, and trade," NOAA chief scientist Rick Spinrad said in a statement. "This year's report shows the importance of international collaboration on sustained, long-term observing programs that provide insights to inform decisions by citizens, policymakers, and industry."

The report found Arctic sea ice reached its annual maximum extent on Feb. 25, 15 days earlier than average and "the lowest extent recorded since records began in 1979." The minimum sea ice extent, which occurred in September 2015, was 29 percent less than the average for 1981-2010 and the fourth lowest value in the satellite record.

First year ice, it said, now dominated the winter ice cover, comprising about 70 percent of the March 2015 ice pack, compared to about half that in the 1980s when older, thicker ice was more prevalent. "The thinner, younger ice is more vulnerable to melting in the summer," the report said.

While Arctic-wide terrestrial snow cover extent in April was above average, June snow cover in both the North American and Eurasian parts of the Arctic was the second lowest in the satellite record that began in 1967. On average, Arctic-wide June snow extent has declined 18 percent per decade since 1979.