Tag Archives: fish population

Gulf of Mexico Dead Zone Severely Impairs Reproduction in Atlantic Croaker, Researchers Find

AUSTIN, Texas — Atlantic croaker living in the large Gulf of Mexico “Dead Zone” exhibit severe reproductive impairment with potential long-term impacts on the fish’s population abundance, researchers from The University of Texas at Austin’s Marine Science Institute have found.

Males and females were found to produce dramatically fewer sperm and eggs. In addition, females in the hypoxic Dead Zone waters were masculinized — some 20 percent actually produced sperm in their ovaries. The sex ratio was also heavily skewed toward males in the hypoxic area. (more…)

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The Shrinking Aral Sea

The Aral Sea is actually not a sea at all. It is an immense lake, a body of fresh water, although that particular description of its contents might now be more a figure of speech than practical fact.

Once it was world’s ‘fourth’ largest lake. But now the lake has shrunk by 70 percent.

(more…)

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