There are indications that the Ocean's food chain is collapsing. Marine biologists are raising the alarm about rising ocean temperatures and dwindling plankton populations, which are the basis for oceanic life. If this proves to be the case, it may well prove catestrophic, and could well undermine sustainability of the entire global ecological system. Other surging threats to oceans include acidification also caused by climate change, and huge dead zones that have resulted from run-off from poorly managed lands. Oceans have long been thought to be too large to be impacted by human beings, but as the human reach encompasses all of nature, it has become clear that even oceans are not impervious to the human stench.

Scientists Raise Alarm About Ocean Health

SEATTLE — With a record number of dead seabirds washing up on West Coast beaches from Central California to British Columbia, marine biologists are raising the alarm about rising ocean temperatures and dwindling plankton populations. "Something big is going on out there," said Julia Parrish, an associate professor in the School of Aquatic Fisheries and Sciences at the University of Washington. "I'm left with no obvious smoking gun, but birds are a good signal because they feed high up on the food chain." Coastal ocean temperatures are 2 to 5 degrees above normal, which may be related to a lack of updwelling, in which cold, nutrient-rich water is brought to the surface.