Six groups of seals threatened by shrinking sea ice are gaining new protections under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) announced late last week.

NOAA will list as threatened two distinct bearded seal populations — one in the Beringia region, which includes Alaska, and one in the Okhotsk region of Russia's far east — and three subspecies of ringed seals (Arctic, Okhotsk and Baltic). Another ringed seal subspecies found only in Lake Ladoga in northwestern Russia will be listed as endangered. A fifth subspecies of ringed seal, the Saimaa in Finland, is already listed as endangered under the ESA.

Forecasts predict that sea ice will be substantially reduced within this century, and there is potential for the spring and summer ice edge to retreat to deep waters of the Arctic Ocean basin. Bearded seals live on sea ice during critical months for breeding, whelping, nursing and molting. Ringed seals also use sea ice for molting and they build snow caves on top of sea ice to shield their pups from freezing temperatures and predators.

"Our scientists undertook an extensive review of the best scientific and commercial data. They concluded that a significant decrease in sea ice is probable later this century and that these changes will likely cause these seal populations to decline," Jon Kurland, protected resources director for NOAA Fisheries’ Alaska region, said in a statement.

NOAA officials said the decision will not result in any immediate restrictions on human activities, though their next step is to evaluate potential protected habitats for Arctic ringed seals and the Beringia bearded seals (those that live in U.S. waters), which already has oil and gas companies in Alaska miffed. In a statement, Kara Moriarty, executive director for the Alaska Oil and Gas Association, criticized the decision for being "based on how climate change might affect these species 100 years from now, despite their populations currently being healthy and abundant." The group is concerned that potential habitats could raise costs and cause delays with oil and gas development, the Alaska Dispatch reported.

NOAA officials said the new listings were based on the best available science, including climate models developed by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The agency also pledged that any future habitat designation will fully consider the economic impact and will aim to avoid unnecessary burdens and costs on states, tribes, localities and the private sector.

A study published earlier this year in the journal Geophysical Research Letters warned that while the mid-winter snowfall rate is expected to increase slightly by the end of the century, Arctic sea ice is expected to start forming later in the season. This means that heavy snow falling earlier in the winter will drop into the ocean instead of piling up on the ice, the researchers said.

Drawing on 10 different climate models, the researchers predicted that the area of the Arctic that gets 8-inch accumulations of snow will drop by almost 70 percent during the 21st century. This would significantly reduce the area where Arctic ringed seals can build sufficient caves. Earlier snowmelts and increased rainfall will also threaten to dissolve the seals' caves before the pups are ready to venture outside on their own, the researchers said.

• On Ice: Stunning Images of Canadian Arctic
• Image Gallery: Weddell Seals Survive Massive Icebergs
• Gallery: Seals of the World

7 Comments

1. 1. outsidethebox 07:45 AM 12/30/12

   Oh, look at the picture. They're so cute and furry and cuddly. They've just GOT to be saved!

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2. 2. mdmooser 10:15 AM 12/30/12

   I imagine sarcasm and ignorance will be replaced with concern when humans are put on the endangered species list.

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3. 3. outsidethebox 06:22 PM 1/1/13

   Human are rarely cute, furry, or cuddly. Perhaps that is why their interests are so often put behind a slew of other species.

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4. 4. Nowsane 05:10 PM 1/2/13

   I have to chuckle when I read about the disappearing Arctic ice. Try looking at Climate Change - Is CO2 the cause? - Pt 1 of 4, http://bit.ly/UbSqvB from Professor Bob Carter, of James Cook University, Australia. There is a bit of humor at the end when he describes how the polar bears and other Arctic life survived the past warming periods.

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5. 5. bucketofsquid in reply to mdmooser 05:59 PM 1/4/13

   Nah, humans have been endangered in whole or in part quite a few times and we are still fun to make fun of.

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6. 6. bucketofsquid in reply to outsidethebox 06:01 PM 1/4/13

   They are fat, mean and smell like fish. That isn't cuddly at all. As a kid I was a hardcore green but as I grew up and learned how nature works I have to wonder if maybe it is OK to let some things go extinct as long as we insure that the over all system can still support some human life.

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7. 7. alan6302 10:31 PM 1/5/13

   There will have to a major extinction event(s) in the next few thousand years. Otherwise, Noah's boat will sink.

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