Sept 16th, 2013 Undercurrent News<\/em><\/p>\n The very ocean that has nourished Alaska\u2019s prized red king crabs may prove to be the species\u2019 undoing.<\/p>\n New research earlier this year shows that Bristol Bay red king crab \u2014 the supersized crustacean that has come to symbolize the fortunes of Alaska\u2019s crab fleet \u2014 could fall victim to the changing chemistry of the oceans, reports the\u00a0Yakima Herald Republic.<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n A team of scientists fears Alaska\u2019s $100 million red king crab fishery could crash in decades to come unless carbon-dioxide emissions reduce or the creatures acclimate to changing conditions.<\/p>\n That grim possibility also raises alarm about the crab fleet\u2019s other major moneymaker, snow crab.<\/p>\n \u201cWith red king crab, it\u2019s all doom and gloom,\u201d Robert Foy, who oversaw the crab research for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in Kodiak, told the newspaper. \u201cWith snow crab, there\u2019s so little known we just can\u2019t say. But we don\u2019t see anything from our experience that\u2019s good for any of these crab. Some is just not as bad as others.\u201d<\/p>\n There\u2019s no evidence that souring seas have yet altered wild populations \u2014 the most corrosive seas now occur at times when red king crab aren\u2019t as susceptible.<\/p>\n Read More Here<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Sept 16th, 2013 Undercurrent News The very ocean that has nourished Alaska\u2019s prized red king crabs may prove to be the species\u2019 undoing. New research earlier this year shows that Bristol Bay red king crab \u2014 the supersized crustacean that … Continue reading