Heat, no food, deadly weather: Climate change kills seabirds

By PATRICK WHITTLE
Associated Press

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — The warming of the planet is taking a deadly toll on seabirds, which are in decline because of heatwaves, extreme weather, failure to reproduce and inadequate fish to eat. They include birds such as albatrosses off the Hawaiian islands and puffins off the Maine coast. The birds are less able to build nests, raise young and hunt for fish as the ocean heats up. That has resulted in mass die-off events of birds such as the Cassin’s auklet in recent years. One estimate says seabird populations have fallen 70% since mid-century.