Scientists Reveal How 10 Billion Snow Crabs Suddenly Vanished

Scientists have linked the disappearance of 10 billion Bering Sea snow crabs to a climate phenomenon that caused an unprecedented mass starvation event among the species.

Climate change has caused negative impacts to the agriculture sector worldwide and can impact everything from wheat to coffee to grapes. Rising water temperatures and drought have contributed to species deaths, including more than 150 river dolphins that recently died in Brazil. Now, according to a new study published in Science on Thursday, the warming planet also contributed to the disappearance of 10 billion snow crabs living in the Bering Sea.

The study revealed that marine heatwaves—a result of Earth's changing climate—contributed to the death of the crabs between 2018 and 2021. The crabs disappeared in hordes after a period of historically high abundance and several marine heatwaves, the study found. Study authors considered the possibility that the crabs had moved to a different part of the sea, but results found that unlikely.

"Consequently, it is unlikely that all of the missing crab from the shelf are on the slope," the study said. "Given these observations, mortality is a likely culprit for the bulk of the collapse."

Newsweek reached out to the study authors by email for comment.

The results were published just days after the Alaska Department of Fish and Wildlife again canceled the snow crab harvest season as countless crabs have disappeared from the Bering Sea.

The study identified how marine heatwaves contributed to the decline of the "ecologically and commercially important species." Although the sea's temperatures remained in the crabs' thermal limits, it increased the species' caloric needs considerably.

"This increase, in conjunction with a restriction in range, led to an unexpected mass starvation event," the study said.

Prior to the starvation event, the snow crab industry was valued at more than $200 million, according to a report by the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute.

The study published two maps, one from 2018 and one from 2021 that revealed the change in the snow crab density on the eastern shelf of the Bering Sea. In the 2018 map, clusters of red identified areas where the snow crab population was abundant. However, the 2021 map showed the population had declined substantially.

Prior to the mass starvation, overfishing was labeled as the largest threat to the species. That threat has now shifted.

"Overfishing has historically been the largest threat to global fisheries, but in many parts of the world, this problem has been addressed with careful management," the study said. "Climate change is the next existential crisis for fisheries, and snow crab are a prime example for how quickly the outlook can change for a population. In 2018, catches were projected to increase to levels not seen in decades. Three years later, the population had collapsed."

Snow crabs can live up to 20 years, according to data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The crabs dine on "almost anything they can catch and break open with their claws, including fish, shrimp, crabs, worms, clams, brittle stars, snails, algae, and sponges," a NOAA webpage dedicated to the species said. "They will also scavenge on anything dead they find."