Global warming being blamed as the cause of herpes outbreak in oysters

First of all, no, the herpes found in these oysters is not the same as the sexually transmitted Herpes simplex virus that's found in humans — we're talking about a totally different species of the virus here (though it did get your attention). This deadly strain of herpes is wiping out oyster beds in France and the UK, caused by a rise in temperature in these normally cold waters. The unusually high temperatures are being blamed on global warming.

Mother Nature Network writes:

"The new strain, named Ostreid herpesvirus 1 (OsHV-1) ?var (mew-var), was first detected in 2008 among breeding Pacific oysters in France. Since then, the virus has wiped out 20 to 100 percent of oysters in the French beds, and this year it appears to have spread to the United Kingdom.

This article appears in Aug 12-18, 2010.