Link to article here: What Is Killing South African Crocs?
It appears South African crocodiles are the newest victims of human industrialization. According to rangers at the Kruger National Park, an unusually large amount of dead crocodile carcasses have been floating along the Olifants river. The river supplies water for industrial farms shipping products internationally and is a source of drinking water and fishing for nearby rural communities. Investigators worry that if the deaths are due to a waterborne pathogene or toxin, there could be serious consequences for human health as well.
Autopsies from some of the dead crocodiles reveal an inflammation of adipose tissue concentrated in the tail region of the crocs. This hardening and enlarging of fat (a condition known as pansteatitis) immobilized the infected crocodile, disabling their ability to hunt. Similar cases have been found in fish living in the river, showing that the disease could be capable of spreading to humans. Researchers believe the condition may be caused by multiple microscopic toxins, including DDT, cyanobacteria, dinoflagellates and others. Multiple man-made changes in the river's ecosystem may be to blame for creating the problem, including hundreds of cole-mining operations and a dam which reduces the flow of the river, allowing for a greater buildup of microorganisms which can contaminate fish and the crocs that eat them. Scientists see no immediate solution and predict that the croc population could be wiped out due to the disease.
I choose this article because I love crocodiles and am deeply disturbed by the recent trend of apex predators being wiped out due to man-made causes. Top predators like crocodiles are perhaps the most important components to ecosystems and due to their slow reproductive cycles and low yield of offspring, they typically have the hardest time recovering from major pitfalls.
2 comments:
Who doesn't love crocodiles? They are an important species in the ecosystem and clearly they have a strong potential of becoming extinct.
You mentioned that the autopsies reported that there was DDT present in the crocs. This caught my attention because it made me think about how the food chain brought DDT from the grasshoppers all the way to the eagles. I suppose that this has happened with South African Crocs too.
One other thing...I think its really funny that you used that picture. Its a reflection on your opinion mentioned in the last paragraph. Nice article and good job.
Crocodiles are SO cool. Wow, I feel like thats all I've been saying in response to many of these articles but Crocodiles, like spiders, are extraordinarily interesting. I am really upset to hear that the many environmental pollutants that humans have created are once again ruining a species habitat and a species. I hope they clean up their act.
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