scrAPES Article 4: Mystery of Mass Squid "Suicides" Possibly Solved
Article Date: December 17, 2012 |
Authors: Tia Ghose and LiveScience
Source: http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/mystery-of-mass-squid-sui/
Thousands of jumbo (Humboldt) squid were seen to be beached upon the shore of Monterey Bay, California, committing suicide from flinging themselves onto shore. Clues have led scientists to believe that poisonous algae that form from "red tides" (a type of harmful algae bloom) have been intoxicating jumbo squids, having them swim on shore. A poisonous chemical that mimics a chemical in the brain known as glutamate in animals. The chemical will bind to glutamate receptors on neurons and the receptor opens channels that let calcium into the cell brain cells, causing them to go haywire. As well a lethal toxin known as domoic acid, as well could be disorientating the squids causing them to travel onto shore before, asphyxiating before they realize what has occurred.
This article was chosen to bring attention to the issue of eutrophication as the cause of massive toxic blooms of algae that occur off the shores of major coastlines. Monitoring the when poisonous algae blooms will occur as well as prevention of these poisonous blooms must be conducted to prevent these mass squid suicides from occurring. Attacking the problem at its source will be the most effective solution to the issue. This will require decreasing the amount of nutrient run-off that has been allowed to be released into the ocean from agricultural regions. If preventative measures can be taken to prevent nutrient run-off, the squid suicide phenomenon will become less prevalent in the region.
This article was chosen to bring attention to the issue of eutrophication as the cause of massive toxic blooms of algae that occur off the shores of major coastlines. Monitoring the when poisonous algae blooms will occur as well as prevention of these poisonous blooms must be conducted to prevent these mass squid suicides from occurring. Attacking the problem at its source will be the most effective solution to the issue. This will require decreasing the amount of nutrient run-off that has been allowed to be released into the ocean from agricultural regions. If preventative measures can be taken to prevent nutrient run-off, the squid suicide phenomenon will become less prevalent in the region.