A hurricane is a type of tropical cyclone, also known as an atmospheric phenomenon capable of causing floods, torrential rains, and strong winds, situations that affect all living beings, that is, animals, flowers, and human beings. We know the catastrophes that occur in homes when the hurricane passes, but how do hurricanes affect marine life? Experts explain what happens to animals in the ocean during and after these tropical cyclones.
What Do Animals Do During a Hurricane?
About 10 hurricanes develop annually in the Atlantic basin, which encompasses the Gulf of Mexico, the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. The force of a hurricane can cause waves that reach 18 meters high, mixing cold waters from the depths of the sea with warmer waters from the surface. The currents of these hurricanes can mix sediments more than 90 meters deep.
When this happens, various sea creatures dive deeper into calmer waters. In other words, beyond the effects on the surface, the marine environment is also one of the victims of the damage generated by a hurricane. In the ocean, when these natural phenomena happen, the water is agitated and the sediments are altered. Although most of the time, they do not cause marine effects, other times the consequences range from changes in salinity to an influx of sediments and bacteria, which can be serious for marine ecosystems.
This Is Exactly What These 10 Animals Do
Changes in water temperature, low barometric pressure, and other similar signals could hypothetically alert fish to an impending storm. One study also found that increased waves on the water’s surface, which churned up the seafloor, caused gray triggerfish to migrate to deeper waters before hurricanes hit. However what happens is also different:
Fish
Anglers say fishing is usually good before a hurricane because the fish are really taking the bait. They believe that fish eat as much as possible before the storm stirs up the water, making it more difficult to find food. After Hurricane Charley passed through Florida, scientists who had been monitoring the sound of fish noticed that the sound was louder during the storm and for three days afterward.
Dolphins
During the 2004 hurricane season, researchers at Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute observed that dolphins living in the Indian River stayed in deep-water pools in their home range. Researchers also observed dolphins, which live in lagoons in the Florida Keys, seeking the deepest, calmest waters, staying underwater as much as possible to avoid the wind and waves.
Manatees
Scientists used to think that manatees swam upstream to get past hurricanes. But manatee monitoring during Hurricane Katrina (when it crossed Florida) and Wilma showed that they stayed offshore where food was plentiful and where they could accommodate. Manatees can stay underwater for 15 to 20 minutes without having to come up for air.
Sharks
Scientists at Mote Marine Laboratory’s Center for Shark Research have documented tagged sharks heading to deeper waters before Tropical Storm Gabriela and during Hurricanes Gordon and Charley. They believe that sharks feel inside their ears when the pressure drops in an approaching storm.}
Lobsters
Scientists who study lobster movements and migrations observed that lobsters tend to move to deeper water areas before and during a storm. They believe that deeper water is not only calmer and colder, but the sea is less affected by rain.
Birds
Bird watchers and ornithologists (scientists who study birds) have observed that some birds delay migration until the hurricanes have passed. They believe that birds can sense changes in atmospheric pressure.
Seabirds
Scientists have also discovered seabirds that have been moved hundreds of miles from the area where they normally live.
Rabbits
Rabbits and other small animals seem to hide in underground burrows, hoping they are above where the storm surge will hit.
Butterflies
Butterflies in a Florida Museum of Natural History rainforest exhibit hid in tree holes and under rocks a few hours before Hurricane Jeanne hit.
Crocodiles
All endangered American crocodiles survived
This story was written in Spanish by Perla Vallejo in Ecoosfera
