NEWS RELEASE 7-NOV-2019

Loss of ice opens pathways for disease transmission among sea lions, ice seals, sea otters and others

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA – DAVIS

Scientists have linked the decline in Arctic sea ice to the emergence of a deadly virus that could threaten marine mammals in the North Pacific, according to a study from the University of California, Davis.

Phocine distemper virus (PDV), a pathogen responsible for killing thousands of European harbor seals in the North Atlantic in 2002, was identified in northern sea otters in Alaska in 2004, raising questions about when and how the virus reached them.

The 15-year study, published today in the journal Scientific Reports [Open access] , <<https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-51699-4>>highlights how the radical reshaping of historic sea ice may have opened pathways for contact between Arctic and sub-Arctic seals that was previously impossible. This allowed for the virus’ introduction into the Northern Pacific Ocean.

“The…