The Human Threats to Penguins
Populations of wildlife around the world are precariously balanced, with much of the problem due to human activity. Aquatic animals, including fish and aquatic mammal species, face unique challenges. Coastal ecosystems have been greatly affected by all sorts of human endeavors, with everything from vessel traffic, resource extraction, and the construction of infrastructure significantly altering coastal landscapes. Though the impact of such human activity has been studied in relation to the Northern hemisphere, its effect on the Southern hemisphere has been investigated less.
The researchers of this study examined penguins in order to understand the impact of human activity on Southern hemisphere ecosystems. These animals are a taxonomic group of species spread across the Southern latitudes. Unlike seabirds that can fly to other areas if their current habitat is deficient in one way or another, penguins have a fairly constrained foraging range and tend to stick close to one area, so they are a good species to study. They are thought of as “marine sentinels,” a species that gives strong indications about an ecosystem’s health, and their life histories are well known to scientists.
Through the observation of numerous penguin populations, this study found that the most common (and actionable) threats to penguins are “habitat degradation, pollution, and fisheries interactions.” Concrete measures could be taken to help mitigate these threats, and the authors note that the creation of “marine protected areas” could go a long way to assist. In addition to this, the researchers state that there is now considerable evidence that penguins are impacted by climate change, and in their opinion, there is no way that humankind can “realistically […] mitigate the impacts of climate change in the short term.” Even though human activity in the Southern hemisphere has been relatively minimal, it has been enough to pose a significant risk to penguins. The presence of several simultaneous high-impact stressors on penguin species is an especially big concern. Whether or not mitigating all impacts is realistic, there is no doubt that trying to do so is important.
Even though the findings are grim, there is a valuable lesson at the heart of this study. Many penguin species have declined over the last two decades and 60% of the species are listed as threatened. For advocates, this research is a reminder that penguins are a good species to study because of their ability to tell us a great deal about the ecosystems that they inhabit, and because of their social status. They are very charismatic animals, and they remain favorites with much of the public. Knowing more about what negatively impacts penguins, and inspiring the public to feel concern and take action for their protection, will likely have the broader effect of helping other species and the ecosystems they inhabit.