El Niño causes widespread marine bird mortality along Ecuador and Peru coasts

Since mid‑June, large numbers of weakened or dead marine birds have been found on beaches in Ecuador and Peru. Experts attribute the die‑off to the El Niño‑related rise in sea‑surface temperatures, which reduces plankton productivity and forces anchoveta and other fish to move to cooler waters. Species reported dead include blue‑footed boobies, Peruvian pelicans, Humboldt penguins, Guanay cormorants, albatrosses and other migratory birds. Authorities have asked the public not to touch the birds and to report sightings to official channels.

In Peru’s northern regions—Piura, Lambayeque and Trujillo—about 100 birds have died on beaches such as Charao, Tantaleán, Nunura and Shode. The majority are Peruvian boobies and blue‑footed boobies, followed by pelicans and fewer cormorants. Biologists say the birds starve because warm waters have depleted anchoveta stocks, their primary prey. “Los piqueros cazan la anchoveta cuando está en cardúmenes superficiales; … al no alimentarse, solo gastan energía, lo que los lleva a morir de inanición,” one park guard explained. Samples taken by Peru’s agricultural health service confirm starvation rather than avian flu, and a decline in sea‑lion weight has also been noted.