In July, ringed seals began climbing out on Barrow beaches well outside the season when they normally do so. The seals had lesions on their rear flippers and around their mouths, and patchy hair loss. Many of them didn't behave normally - they were sluggish, and failed to flee when humans approached. 

 

Necropsies showed that the seals had fluid in their lungs, abnormal growths in their brains, and white spots on their livers. So far 75 seals have been confirmed sick, and 60 dead. The same problems have been reported in Canada and Russia, and among bearded seals and walruses.

 

This week, the ongoing mysterious deaths of seals has been deemed alarming enough to release federal funds to help solve the mystery. On Tuesday, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) dubbed this problem an "unusual mortality event," and announced that it would give researchers access to funds for more in-depth analysis.

 

Ringed seals are the smallest of Alaska's seals, and are a crucial item in the diet of polar bears. At this point, researchers claim they are seeking evidence of a virus. If the seals were being stricken by a virus, it could potentially infect polar bears as well. And it wouldn't take very much for Alaska's polar bear population to collapse entirely, at this point.

 

Of course, the same concern is true if the seals prove to be suffering from radiation sickness. Although official sources are being circumspect on this count, most people are drawing their own conclusions. The meltdown of the Fukushima Daiichi reactor turns out to have been far more catastrophic than we were led to believe at the time. 

 

No one yet knows what effect the reactor's meltdown will have on sea life, either locally or throughout the northern Pacific Rim. The meltdown caused a large amount of radioactive material to be released directly into the Pacific Ocean. Current estimates are that the oceanic pollution levels were about 30 times higher than TESCO initially reported.

 

There is also the ongoing issue of radioactive waste in Russia's territory. The Soviet Union used the Arctic Sea as a dumping ground for radioactive waste, as well as rusting ships and submarines. In the late 1990s, radioactivity in the area was measured at 100 times higher than normal.

 

Honestly, if you look at the state our oceans are in, the surprising thing is that it's taken so long for seals to get this sick. The question isn't really "Why now?" but "Why not sooner?"