Saturday, 26th July 2025

Heat wave in Canada kills millions of marine life creatures

The destructive heatwave that broke temperature records in British Columbia, Canada, the previous week is believed to be a cause for the massive death of marine animals

Tuesday, 13th July 2021

Heat wave in Canada kills millions of marine life creatures
The destructive heatwave that broke temperature records in British Columbia, Canada, the previous week is believed to be a cause for the massive death of marine animals that live on the beaches of Western Canada.

The 5-day "heat dome" that also improved over the northwestern US increased temperatures on the coast to 40 degrees Celsius, breaking long-standing records and giving limited relief for days.

The sweltering heat is deemed to have killed a number of people and also contributed to the wildfires that are currently increasing across the province. The sudden increase in temperature even had a bad impact on marine life.

As per to CNN, Christopher Harley, a professor in the zoology department at the University of British Columbia, discovered numerous dead mussels darted open and decaying in their shells at Kitsilano Beach.

Harley suspects that the extreme heat may have killed over a billion marine species. To examine the effects of climate change on the ecology of rocky shores, he a walk down on a beach in the Vancouver region. Harley revealed that he could smell the dead animals from the past day.

He emphasized that when we generally walk on the beach, it usually doesn't smell. But there were so many empty mussel shells scattered about that people couldn't help but plunge on dead animals as we walked around.

He explained that mussels connect themselves to rocks and other things. He said mussles are usually brought to the air and sunlight during low waves; however, he added that they generally cannot handle temperatures over 100 degrees for very long.

Monika Walker is an experienced journalist specializing in global political developments and international relations. With a keen eye for accuracy and analysis, Monika has been reporting for over a decade, bringing stories to light that matter to readers around the world. She holds a degree in International Journalism and is passionate about giving a voice to underrepresented communities through factual reporting.