Russia's Endangered Seas

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The Bering Sea
Bering Sea: Treasure at the Top of the World

Tucked between the continents of Asia and North America, the Bering Sea is an international body of water shared by Russia and the US. This northern sea is geographically enclosed by the 50-mile wide Bering Strait at the north, the Aleutian and Commander Islands to the south, the Kamchatka Peninsula to the west and much of Alaska to the east. Ecologically, however, the Bering Sea is defined in many ways by neighboring waters. For example, ocean currents in the Chuckchi Sea bring nutrients Into the Bering Sea; weather patterns in the Chuckhi Sea affect the extent and duration of sea ice in the Bering. Migration patterns of species such as whales, seabirds, and fish connect the Bering Sea to the North Pacific Ocean, the Gulf of Alaska, and the Sea of Okhotsk.


The Bering Sea is an extraordinarily rich ecosystem, recognized as one of the world's most productive and biologically diverse marine regions. Much of the sea's diversity can be attributed to the contours of the ocean floor here. A wide variety of habitats is found across the continental shelf, which is comprised of the coastal zone, middle shelf, outer shelf, and basin. At the convergence of the basin and outer shelf, primary production and secondary production (the production of zooplankton and phytoplankton) is exceptionally high, further supporting the basis of the rich food web in the Bering Sea. The currents in the Bering Sea create areas of significant upwellings, in which nutrients from the ocean bottom are carried upward, enriching the surface layers of the water.

Over 400 species of fish, crustaceans, and mollusks, 50 species of birds, and 25 marine mammals have been identified in the Bering Sea. More than 15 whale and other cetacean species use the Bering Sea as a summer and fall feeding ground or a wintering area for several months each year. Significant for more than lust its rich marine biodiversity, the Bering Sea is tremen dously important for the economies of the US and Russia. For example, more than 50 percent of US seafood production comes from the Bering Sea annually; this commercial fishery is valued at more than $1 billion per year. For Russia, the Bering Sea is equally important and has been estimated to produce more than half of the country's marine products on an annual basis.