An international team of scientists from the UK and France studied long-term changes in plankton communities in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean. Observations showed that the amount of plankton in these waters has been decreasing for sixty years in a row. To work published In the scientific journal Science of The Total Environment.
The team analyzed 24 phyto- and zooplankton datasets to map the abundance of eight planktonic life forms over 60 years.
Observations have shown that since the 1960s, populations of dinoflagellates (an important type of phytoplankton) have declined by approximately 5% per decade, while holoplankton (zooplankton that live in the water column) have declined by 7% over the same period.
According to scientists, the amount of plankton is decreasing due to warming oceans. Since these creatures continue to be an important part of the food chain, their gradual extinction is a serious concern. Additionally, phytoplankton produces 50% of the oxygen on the planet.
The researchers called on governments around the world to pay attention to the problem and take action to combat anthropogenic emissions that are increasing global warming, the main cause of the decline in plankton populations.
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