Viral Video: Warm El Niño Waters Lead To Rare Crab Swarm Near Channel Islands
SANTA BARBARA (CBS) - Underwater video reveals the water off of Southern California's Channel Islands filled with tiny red crabs.
National Marine Mammal Laboratory researcher Jeff Harris shot the video of pelagic red crabs off San Miguel Island, at western of the chain off the coast of Santa Barbara.
The video was posted last week by Channel Islands National Park, and had already been viewed more than 54,000 times as of Tuesday. Here's what all of the fuss is about:
Pelagic Red CrabsResearcher Jeff Harris from the National Marine Mammal Laboratory shot this video of pelagic red crabs (Pleuroncodes planipes) off San Miguel Island. These crabs are usually found in Mexico. However, during warmer water periods like El Nino they venture up to the Channel Islands. Learn more at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pleuroncodes_planipes
Posted by Channel Islands National Park on Wednesday, August 26, 2015
Here's what the National Weather Service had to say about the video, based on its own post out of Los Angeles.
"Pelagic red crabs, which appear to be very good swimmers, have ventured north to our waters due to the warmer ocean water caused by El Niño. The crabs typically reside further south, in the waters near Mexico."
Earlier this summer, the National Weather Service reported temperatures on the California Coast at roughly 5-10 degrees above average. There is growing consensus among meteorologists that a powerful El Niño is taking aim at the Bay Area for this rainy season, fueled in part by the warm ocean temperatures.