die-off

18 Stories

Bird Deaths Caused by 'Blob' Were 'Way Worse' Than Thought

Alaska seabird die-off was 'largest documented wildlife mortality event in the modern era'

(Newser) - After a marine heatwave called "the Blob" killed off large numbers of a seabird called the common murre along the West Coast between 2014 and 2016, scientists estimated that up to 1 million birds had died . But it was "way worse than we thought," US Fish and...

In One State, Drought Has Led to 'Firmaggedon'

Oregon saw 1.1M acres of dead firs in 2022

(Newser) - Drought across the nation, especially in the West, has affected produce , homeowners' water use , and power production . But in Oregon, there's a new problem that's cropped up from the ultra-dry conditions: a historic tree die-off, in which surveyors found 1.1 million acres of dead firs in 2022....

On Russia's Caspian Coast, a Grisly Find

A Russian official said hypoxia was likely the cause

(Newser) - About 2,500 Caspian seals have been found dead on the Caspian Sea coast in southern Russia, officials said Sunday. Authorities in the Russian province of Dagestan initially said it was unclear why the mass die-off happened, but a top Russian environmental official on Monday said the cause of death...

Tons of Dead Fish in River: 'Most Likely Dealing With a Crime'

Poland is recruiting soldiers to help deal with 'ecological catastrophe'

(Newser) - Poland has deployed soldiers to help clean up the Oder River, which runs along the border with Germany, after 10 tons of dead fish surfaced from the waterway in what one official described as an "ecological catastrophe." An association of fishers in Zielona Gora, a city in the...

Mass Die-Off Hits 'Unsung Heroes' of Coral Reefs

Up to 95% of sea urchin populations are dying in areas across the Caribbean

(Newser) - For the first time in decades, scientists have observed a massive die-off of sea urchins in the Caribbean, which could serve as another devastating blow to coral reefs. Widespread deaths of at least three species of sea urchins—the West Indian sea egg, rock boring, and black sea urchins—have...

Finally, Cause of City's 'Stench of Death' Is Revealed

Fire at California warehouse filled with beauty products led to plant die-off, which led to hydrogen sulfide in the air

(Newser) - In early October, residents in Carson, Calif., started picking up on a noxious smell emanating from the Dominguez Channel, with dozens of complaints called in daily to the South Coast Air Quality Management District. Some even noted they were suffering from fatigue, headaches, and respiratory issues, reports the Guardian . Now,...

Cause of Mass Elephant Die-Off Is Revealed
Cause of Mass Elephant
Die-Off Is Revealed
in case you missed it
Sep 26, 2020 1:30 PM CDT

Cause of Mass Elephant Die-Off Is Revealed

Botswana blames bacteria in water holes, not poaching

(Newser) - Researchers were baffled when elephants began dropping like flies in the African nation of Botswana earlier this year. Now, government researchers say they've figured out what happened, and it doesn't involve poachers. Instead, they say a naturally occurring bacteria in watering holes is the culprit, reports the BBC...

Mystery Surrounds Sudden Deaths of Elephants

At least 356 carcasses found, many near watering holes in Botswana

(Newser) - Hundreds of elephants have been found dead of unknown cause in Botswana in what's being called a "conservation disaster." Some 169 carcasses were spotted in the Okavango Delta—home to 15,000 of the country's 135,000 elephants—during a single three-hour flight in early May,...

200K Antelopes Died Suddenly. Now Scientists Know Why

High heat and humidity altered bacteria in their bodies: study

(Newser) - Saiga antelopes have been roaming Central Asia since the time of the woolly mammoth, an achievement only a resilient species could pull off. But now, "total extinction" may be on the horizon. That's according to researchers studying the deaths of more than 200,000 endangered saigas in Kazakhstan...

Maine's Vaunted Blue Mussels Are Vanishing
Maine's Vaunted
Blue Mussels
Are Vanishing
NEW STUDY
Aug 28, 2016 9:11 AM CDT

Maine's Vaunted Blue Mussels Are Vanishing

Probably thanks to warmer waters, overfishing, predatory species

(Newser) - New England is running out of mussels. The Gulf of Maine's once strong population of wild blue mussels is disappearing, scientists say. A study led by marine ecologists at the University of California at Irvine found the numbers along the gulf coastline have declined by more than 60% over...

Starfish Ripping Off Own Arms
 Starfish Ripping Off Own Arms 
Feb 3, 2014 1:50 PM CST

Starfish Ripping Off Own Arms

Reports of 'sea star wasting syndrome' get more disturbing

(Newser) - Scientists are still trying to figure out why starfish are dying in massive numbers, turning into what one taxonomist described as "goo piles." The latest news on the die-off is similarly disturbing: One biology professor studied sea stars suffering from what is being called "sea star wasting...

Bee Die-Offs Tied to Tobacco Plant 'STD'
 Bee Die-Offs Tied to 
 Tobacco Plant 'STD' 
study says
Jan 22, 2014 8:13 AM CST

Bee Die-Offs Tied to Tobacco Plant 'STD'

Tobacco ringspot virus jumped from tobacco to soy to bees: study

(Newser) - Honeybees have been dying in huge numbers since 2006, and a new study finds that a virus may be one cause. The tobacco ringspot virus has mutated quickly and jumped from tobacco plants to soy plants to bees, researchers say, and the annual increase in honeybee deaths between autumn and...

China Fishes 900 Dead Pigs From River

But nobody's really sure where they came from yet

(Newser) - Here's one thing you definitely don't want to find in your water source: 900 or so dead pigs. But that's exactly what Chinese officials have pulled out of a Shanghai river that serves as a city water source. But there's mystery added to the ick factor,...

In Steamy Midwest Streams, Scads of Fish Die Off

Hot, dry summer killing off thousands

(Newser) - Thousands of fish are dying in the Midwest as one of the hottest, driest summers in history dries up rivers and pushes water temps in some spots to nearly 100 degrees. About 40,000 shovelnose sturgeon died in Iowa last week as the water temp hit 97, while Nebraska fishery...

Texas Cattle Die-Off Linked to Grass

USDA checking for mutations in grass that produced cyanide gas

(Newser) - A sudden die-off of almost an entire herd of Texas cattle has been linked to a hybrid of Bermuda grass, reports CBS . Fifteen of the 18 animals on an 80-acre Elgin ranch began bellowing, went into convulsions, and quickly died three weeks ago when they were let loose on the...

Peru: Climate Change Behind Dead Animals?

Dead dolphins, birds could have been affected by warming waters

(Newser) - Peru may finally have an answer for the 5,000 birds and nearly 900 dolphins that have died on its northern coast: climate change. As waters warm, food supply is disrupted, says the country’s deputy environment minister. A weather expert also confirms warmer waters due to El Niño...

Peru: Steer Clear of Beach Til We Solve Animal Mystery

Government claims virus, starvation likely causes of dolphin, bird deaths

(Newser) - Peru insists that the hundreds of dead dolphins that have washed up on its coast are not related to the hundreds of dead seabirds that also recently began turning up. But no definitive cause has yet been released, three months after the government started testing the dolphins, and some are...

Mystery Dolphin Die-Off Hits Peru

Acoustic impact or virus could be to blame

(Newser) - Something mysterious is killing thousands of dolphins in Peru. Since January, an estimated 2,800 of the sea creatures have been found dead on Peru's northern beaches, reports Scientific American . Experts believe the mass die-off could be caused by acoustic interference stirred up by oil testing or possibly a...

18 Stories