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Successfully removed from the threatened species List in 1994, gray whales are again in danger. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Noaa), Since 2019 , 346 dead gray whales were "blocked" on earth along the Côte du Pacific in the United States - and this number goes to 688 when you include Western shores of Canada and Mexico. Since these whales can reach 49 feet in length and weigh up to 90,000 pounds, save them and rehabilitate them is not an easy task. Now scientists have revealed the heartbreaking reason for which gray whales continue to wash on the ground. Continue to read to find out more about this problem and if it can be stopped.

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According to the NOAA, the gray whales were found once in the oceans of the northern hemisphere, but hunting for commercial hunting ends with limited their population at the North Pacific Ocean.

"International conservation measures were promulgated in the 1930s and 1940s to protect whales from overexploitation, and in the mid-1980s, the whale hunting commission established a moratorium on commercial hunting", explain- they.

As mentioned, in 1994, the oriental stock or the separate population segment (DPS) - These gray whales found in North America compared to those of Asia which are still endangered - have been delimited by the law on endangered species.

"The gray whales make one of the longest annual migrations of all mammals, traveling around 10,000 round-trip miles and in some cases more than 14,000 miles," explains the Noaa. And although this long journey creates many opportunities to observe whales, it also endangers these beautiful animals in danger.

The collision with ships is the greatest avoidable threat to gray whales, explains the NOAA. The animals feed and migrate along the west coast, which has some of the highest trafficking in ships in the world.

Many of these boats are commercial fishing ships, which have additional threats in the form of crafted whales in fishing equipment.

"Once entangled, whales can drag and swim with equipment attached for long distances or be anchored in place and unable to swim," explains the Noaa. "Events like these cause fatigue, compromised food capacity or serious injuries, which can ultimately lead to death."

But these threats do not take into account recent components.

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In 2019, after a series of whales on the west coast, the Noaa declared the model an unusual mortality event (UME), which they define as "an unexpected exchanger; implies significant death of any population of marine mammals; and requires an immediate response. ""

In June of the same year, alone, at least 70 The gray whales were found dead and blocked on the coasts of California, Oregon, Washington and Alaska, reported at the time. To put this in perspective, they noted that normally, an average of 35 gray whales was found dead on the west coast each year.

"There were juveniles but also adults. There were men and women. It was everywhere at this stage", " Justin Viezbicke , Said the California California coordinator, told The Outlet.

"Most whales, and especially emaciated whales, will tend to flow to death," added John Calambokidis , Research biologist at Cascadia Research Collective in Olympia, Washington. "Thus, the numbers that are washed represent a fraction of the total. The vast majority is not reported."

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Since 2019, scientists have continued to attend gray whales washing the shore in record numbers, simultaneously looking for the deep cause outside the collisions of ships. And now, researchers from Oregon State University believe that climate change is to be blamed, according to a Study published this month in the newspaper Science .

"It looks like this time we have a fairly good smoking pistol," Josh Stewart , assistant professor at the Marine Mammal Institute of Oregon State and principal author of the study, the media told KTVB. "We can now say much more concluded that it is probably Arctic that lead these things. ""

As KTVB explains, gray whales begin their migration trip to Mexico, where they give birth. They then go to the Arctic to eat for four months before starting the trip again. Their main food source is small crustaceans called benthic amphipods, which feed on algae pushing on the underside of sea ice. But with climate change warming the Arctic region, there is less sea ice, Less algae and, in turn, fewer benthic amphipods for dining whales.

This is particularly problematic since gray whales quickly for the other eight months of the year; So, during their four months in the Arctic, they need it " throat Said Stewart to NBC News.

"When you have less sea ice and fewer days of sea ice, you do not get these algae reaching the seabed to create this productivity that the gray whales need," Stewart told KTVB. "We know that the resources on which gray whales count - to eat, to earn a living, to reproduce - are already strongly affected by climate change and will continue to be more and more affected by climate change."

Despite the painful effects of climate change, Stewart says he is convinced that gray whales will not disappear: "They have experienced a major climate change in the past. They are quite adaptable," he told NBC News . AE0FCC31AE342FD3A1346EBB1F342FCB

However, he warned that gray whales are likely to survive in smaller numbers than in the past. "We are going to live more and more in a world where we are going to have to face these impacts that are difficult to reverse and have really important effects on the species that we care about," he told KTVB. "And it's a difficult stomach thing."

As reported by NBC News, the gray whale population of the North Pacific was around 27,000 in 2016; Today, it decreased to 14,500.