Posted on 10/24/2019 1:22:36 PM PDT by yesthatjallen
Tens of millions of voracious purple sea urchins that have already chomped their way through towering underwater kelp forests in California are spreading north to Oregon, sending the delicate marine ecosystem off the shore into such disarray that other critical species are starving to death.
A recent count found 350 million purple sea urchins on one Oregon reef alone — more than a 10,000% increase since 2014. And in Northern California, 90% of the giant bull kelp forests have been devoured by the urchins, perhaps never to return.
Vast “urchin barrens” — stretches of denuded seafloor dotted with nothing but hundreds of the spiny orbs — have spread to coastal Oregon, where kelp forests were once so thick it was impossible to navigate some areas by boat.
The underwater annihilation is killing off important fisheries for red abalone and red sea urchins and creating such havoc that scientists in California are partnering with a private business to collect the over-abundant purple urchins and “ranch” them in a controlled environment for ultimate sale to a global seafood market.
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(Excerpt) Read more at apnews.com ...
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One company, Urchinomics, is already working on urchin ranching projects in Japan, Canada and California and sees a future where the overwhelming demand for wild urchin roe is replaced by a taste for human-raised purple urchins collected from the seafloor, allowing kelp forests to rebound.
A business opportunity.
The boogeyman is climate change, again...
Yum...send them my way!
How is this possible with all the sushi joints around the world? The eggs are such a delicacy not to mention the meat.
Too bad California can’t figure out a way to make a drug from it. Problem solved.
Sounds like they could use a timely oil spill to reduce the population.
That’s nothing compared to the threat of blue progressives who plague California and Oregon.
Will this be followed by a sea otter population explosion?
Are they radioactive?
“That’s nothing compared to the threat of blue progressives who plague California and Oregon.”
It’s like Blade 2. Now there is a vampire killing other vampires.
For anyone who believes in evolution why is this a problem?
Survival of the ones that survive (or so they say).
Purple Sea Urchins. Didn’t they used to open for Strawberry Alarm Clock?
“How is this possible with all the sushi joints around the world? “
Read the article?
Good point.
They’re gonna need bigger Otters.
Meanwhile, the Japanese will probably take as many of the little spiny ba$tards for the eggs (Uni) as can be collected. An acquired taste delicacy.
SAVE THE PURPLE SEA URCHINS!
Yep, yep, yep. Read too fast the first time. They’re starving so do not produce healthy-enough eggs.
Eat them.............................
SAVE THE PURPLE SEA URCHINS!
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